Saturday, December 15, 2007

The Value of Chores

Last Thursday we got such lovely snow, about 10 inches of it. Before school on Friday, there was a fair amount of shoveling that had to be done before uncovering our cars. Everyone in my street was out with their shovels, chatting to each other and getting some nice "heavy work" before starting their day. Typically that time would have been spent in front of a newspaper or the computer. I couldn't help but think of several of my students who would have benefited from this "heavy work" prior to their school day.

That brings me to topic of chores. Not only do they teach a great work ethic and persistence at a task, but in many instances they can be designed to provide the needed sensory input in a child's life. Raking leaves, shoveling snow, carrying out the trash and recycling bins all can help to regulate a child. Have we dropped chores from our children's lives because they are so over scheduled? See a previous post on the value of heavy work.

I am hoping for more snow.

Connection to occupational therapy: skills for the job of living - work

photo citation: North Idaho Dad

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