How to Divide Chores Between a Teen Boy and a Teen Girl

Making your teenagers complete chores is an effective way to teach them about responsibility and about being a productive member of a team. Both boys and girls also need to learn how to perform basic household tasks such as doing the laundry, washing the dishes or cooking dinner so that they can take care of these tasks for themselves when they are older. Rotating chores and playing to your children's interests and strengths can help establish an equitable division of duties.

Instructions

    • 1

      Divide the responsibilities evenly. The New York Times reported that two separate studies showed that boys spent far less time completing chores than girls. The first study, conducted by Highlight magazine, found that 73.3 percent of girls say they do chores at home, while only 65.3 percent of boys said the same. The second study, conducted by the University of Michigan, found that girls spent seven hours on chores each week, while boys only did five. Not only does this inequity perpetuate gender stereotypes, but it shortchanges boys on the important lessons that chores can teach. When dividing chores, don't just think about the number of tasks. Think about the time it takes to complete each, as well as the relative difficulty, and then divide tasks so that your son and your daughter both have equal responsibilities in terms of time and effort spent.

    • 2

      Avoid gender stereotyping. Many girls end up performing chores like taking care of the laundry or cleaning the house, while boys are assigned tasks like mowing the yard or taking out the trash. By assigning chores in this manner, you limit the skills that your children learn and reinforce gender stereotypes that may limit their roles in their personal relationships later in life. Boys need to learn how to cook just as much as girls, and girls need to know how to use a drill.

    • 3

      Rotate chores. When you rotate chores, you not only avoid limiting your children to gender-typed roles, but you also ensure an equitable distribution of duties. Both your teenage son and your teenage daughter should each be responsible for all of the household tasks at one time or another. Rotating chores will also ensure that they both learn valuable skills that they will need later in life, such as how to do the laundry or how to make dinner.

    • 4

      Play to their strengths and interests. Once your children have had a chance to experience all the chores, you may decide that it's appropriate to rearrange their duties so that they spend more time on chores that they enjoy or that they are good at doing. For example, if your daughter really loves walking the dog but your son doesn't, there's no point making your son do it if he already knows how. Make chore time less challenging by assigning them duties that they both want to do.

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