Parents baffled as 'age-appropriate’ chores list says two-year-olds should be folding washing

28 January 2021, 10:40

By Naomi Bartram

@naomibartram

Mums and dads are divided over a list of 'age-appropriate' tasks for kids.

With most of us spending a lot more time inside, many parents have been asking their children to help out around the house.

Whether that be emptying the dishwasher, setting the table or tidying away their toys, every little helps when it comes to chores.

But one to-do list has gone viral after it suggested kids should be folding up washing and ‘collecting firewood’ at the age of two.

Shared on Facebook by a mum in Australia, the list prescribes responsibilities based on how old your child is.

Those aged two to three are also expected to set the table, and dust skirting boards.

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Meanwhile, kids ages four to five should prepare simple snacks, disinfect doorknobs, and use a hand-held vacuum, as well as sorting silverware and feeding pets.

When they reach age seven, apparently kids should be emptying the dishwasher, peeling vegetables and replacing the toilet roll.

Children between eight and nine should change lightbulbs and walk dogs, while 10 and 11-year-olds are advised to clean bathrooms and do ‘simple mending’.

By the time they get to 12, children should be able to cook a whole dinner, iron their clothes, mow the lawn, do the weekly shop and even trim the hedges.

Unsurprisingly, the list has divided parents online, with many saying even adults would struggle with some of the tasks.

One mum wrote: “My husband doesn’t do 99% of this list, why should my kids?”

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Another said: “Unpopular opinion but my kids are just kids. I was brought up in a household where I did these chores daily and HATED it.

"Not saying it’s necessarily wrong but I absolutely cannot make my babies do something I resented as a child.”

A third commented: “If the kids are doing all that then what are the parents doing?”

But many parents thought the list was a good idea, with a woman writing: “We did these jobs in my house when I was growing up, I think it is fine and teaches kids how to live in the real world.”

“My boys can cook, clean, know how to help dye roots, change a light bulb, plumb a washing machine, and it started from the day they could walk,” agreed another.

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