ENCOURAGED IN HEART

Do you have “skills”? Oh, I have plenty o’ skills, but the problem is, I’m not doing a very good job in teaching my kiddos my “skills” all in the name of ease, or time management or whatever you want to call my impatience. Too many times, I’ve taken the easier road, with the street name, “It’s easy for me to do if for you, than take more time to teach you.” There is no way that would fit on just one street sign, so I’ll just recap and call it “Easy Street”.

Letting my kids live on “Easy Street” has helped me live on “Crazy Street”. So, since I’m the mature one (cough, cough), I have to step up to my privilege of teaching, training and sharing my skills to my cute freckled offspring!

This past May, at my last MOMSnext meeting, I received a very helpful list. A list, which my MOMSnext leader and friend, Miss Crafty Kristen and super sweet Jenny, complied and later emailed me, so that I could share it with you.

Below you’ll find an awesome list, with age appropriate life skills, of the tools that children need to succeed in life. I nearly vomited up my salad and pasta dish (hello TMI) when I read how much more I could be teaching my sons.

Well, this summer’s been a time o’ teaching and pooling and packing.

As a result of this awesome meeting and list, things have changed around this place! Fink children know how to make their beds. You’ll find that one under age 3 on “the list”,

unload a dishwasher, fold clothes, apply sunscreen,

(okay, they still need some help with that one…), prepare their breakfast and the summer’s not done!

With no further ado, here’s “the list”…I hope you’re sitting when you read this.

Age 2
• Undress self
• Put own pajamas away
• Wash face and hands
• Comb or brush own hair (with help)
• Brush teeth (with help)
• Pick up toys
• Tidy up bedroom
• Clear off own place at table
• Be able to play safely and alone for a set period of time (1/2 to 1 hour) in own room.
(Under supervision. Children need to know that they can be alone and still have fun.)

Age 3
• Dress self (with help)
• Make own bed (use comforter)
• Wipe up own spills
• Help set table
• Snap, zipper and button
• Put dirty clothes in hamper
• Start swim lessons

Age 4
• Help gather laundry
• Use a handheld vacuum
• Pick up outside toys
• Dust and clean TV screen
• Empty wastebaskets
• Know own phone number
• Know own address
• Help empty dishwasher
• Help bring in groceries
• Tie own shoes
• Sit quietly in church (looking at books or drawing quietly is OK)
• Next level swim lessons

Age 5
• Put clean clothes away neatly
• Swim (goal – swim independently)
• Leave bathroom clean after use
• Clean toilet
• Feed and water pets
• Get mail (if in a safe place) and put it in the proper place
• Receive a small allowance (if used)
• Money Management: saving, spending and charitable giving
• Know how to make emergency phone calls (911)
• Dust low shelves and objects (consider using a Swiffer)
• Empty kitchen trash
• Clean brushes and combs
• Organize bathroom drawers
• Learn to roller skate
• Learn to jump rope
• Learn to ride a bike

Age 6
• Organize own drawers
• Organize own closet
• Empty dishwasher and put dishes away
• Wash and dry dishes by hand
• Straighten living and family rooms
• Rake leaves
• Help put groceries away
• Make juice from a can or mix
• Make a sandwich and toast
• Basics of spending, saving, and giving
• Pour milk into cereal
• Pour milk or juice into a cup
• Wash out plastic trash cans
• Clean mirrors
• Bathe alone
• Clean windows

Age 7
• Use a vacuum cleaner
• Clean pet cages and food bowls
• Use a broom and dustpan
• Sweep porches, decks, driveways and walkways
• Take a written phone message
• Learn basic food groups and good nutrition habits
• Cook canned soup
• Read and prepare a simple recipe
• Be familiar with cooking, measuring tools and their uses
• Make Jell-O and Boil eggs (hard and soft)
• Money management (earning money and saving for a goal)
• Pack own sack lunch
• Cut up own meat, pancakes, etc.
• Water outside plants, flowers and garden
• Arrange refrigerator or bulletin board “pictures”
• Weed flower beds and vegetable garden
• Strip bed sheets
• Carry dirty clothes hamper to laundry room
• Sort clothes for washing by color and fabric and check pockets
• Straighten book and toy shelves
• Begin music lessons

Age 8
• Fold clothes neatly without wrinkles
• Iron flat items
• Remake own bed with clean sheets
• Clean interior of car
• Vacuum furniture (ie., chairs and couches), especially under cushions
• Water house plants and lawn outside
• Clean bathroom sink, toilet, and tub
• Load and turn on dishwasher
• Trim own nails and clean own ears
• Learn model making
• Set table correctly
• Mop floor
• Peel carrots and potatoes
• Begin teaching time management skills, assignment deadlines, or short blocks of time
• Money Management: Spend, Save, Give principle

Age 9
• Load and operate washing machine and dryer (clean lint trap and washer filter)
• Time management (get activities done in a block of time)
• Fold blankets neatly
• Straighten and organize kitchen drawers
• Help clean out refrigerator
• Prepare hot beverages
• Prepare boxed macaroni and cheese
• Cook hot dogs and scrambled eggs
• Brown hamburger meat
• Dust all household furniture
• Count and give monetary change
• Compare quality and prices (unit pricing)
• Oil bicycle

Age 10
• Replace light bulbs and understand wattage
• Distinguish between good and spoiled food
• Bake a cake from a mix
• Cook frozen and canned vegetables
• Make pancakes from scratch
• Understand the importance of ingredient and nutrient labeling
• Plan a balanced meal
• Know how to select and prepare fruits and vegetables
• Bake cookies from scratch
• Repair bicycle tire and learn basic adjustments
• Know basic emergency first-aid procedures
• Understand uses of medicine and seriousness of overuse
• Wipe down kitchen cupboards
• Be able to do family laundry completely
• Mow lawn
• Know how to handle a pocket knife
• Sew simple crafts on a sewing machine (pillows, bean bags, etc.)

Age 11
• Replace fuse; know where circuit breakers are
• Change vacuum belt and bag
• Clean and straighten garage
• Bake muffins and biscuits
• Make a green salad and dressing
• Do simple mending and sew on buttons
• Wash the car
• Learn basic electrical repairs
• Know a variety of knots
• Understand basics of camera use
• Be a helper in a church ministry
(ie., nursery, Sunday School)

Ages 12 to 15
• Make deposits and withdrawals at the bank
• Perform basic first aid and CPR
• Time Management (should be able to manage an entire day of activities/assignments)
• Check and fill all car fluids
• Type with proficiency
• Money Management: Budgeting basics, Charitable Giving, Spending Plan, Saving for a car, Saving Money, Emergency Fund

Ages 16 to 18
• Plan well-balanced meals, including shopping and cooking
• Pass a driver’s test
• Write checks and balance a checkbook
• Fill out a job application
• Make one complete meal (nothing gourmet, just make sure they can feed themselves)
• Money Management: Budget / Cash Flow, Debit cards vs. Credit Cards, Fraud Protection, Teaching Investing
• Prepare a resume

Kristen and Jenny made this list from the following resources:
*Life Skills: Life Skills for Kids: Equipping Your Child for the Real World by C. Field

*Money Management: www.giveme20.com

*Character Education: www.goodcharacter.com

*Excerpts from What Every Child Should Know Along the Way by Gail Martin

Proverbs 22:6 The Bible tells me to Train em’ up alright…I love how the Message translation says to, “Point your kids in the right direction—when they’re old they won’t be lost.”

Thanks to God giving me MOMSnext, I’m on the job and pointing them in the right direction! (see what a smart decision you made my registering Sister Sexy Boots?!) This is just another way MOMSnext has encouraged me in my path to becoming the mother I want to be, a better mother.

Click here to find a MOPS or MOMSnext group in your area. This year’s theme is: The Art and Science of Mothering

After reading this list, what is one skill that you’re going to teach your child?!?