#midgrade

- sort items by colors or shape - clean toilets with supervision - wash windows with supervision - put away hard-to-break dishes in low cupboards (there is no such thing as unbreakable when you have kids) - cut soft veggies with a duller knife (mushrooms, or breaking broccoli stems) - make their own sandwich - get their own cereal (possibly with help for the milk pouring) - clean up spills with minimal supervision - feed pets at least once a day - shower with minimal supervision - put on their own snowsuit - tie shoes (maybe... this can be hard depending on fine motor skills) - put clothes in drawer - put dirty clothes in laundry hamper - wash off sidewalk with hose - pick up trash around house - scrub cabinets and appliance faces during kitchen cleaning Most can probably make their bed but, really, WHY?  My policy has always been to leave the kid’s room to the kid. No food is allowed, and no drinks other than water (this way you don’t get bugs) and then they get their room their own way. If it’s messy and they break their toys... bummer. Don’t replace the toy and let them learn how to clean up and put things away (make sure to provide adequate storage).  My kids are in charge of their own rooms. I don’t go in to clean them unless it is an absolute disaster, and then I do a Garbage Bag Clean-Up. Everything goes in a big bag (or plastic tote) and gets sentenced to the garage (or closet) and the kid earns back one toy at a time for random good behavior. This is a good way to triage the toys when you have too many and weed out the ones your kid really doesn’t need or want. Remember, a 5yo is mostly emotions, and they get super attached to random things. So don’t take their best beloved toy/blanket/drum stick of all time. What you’re doing with the bags is basically rebooting the bedroom system. You take everything out and reintroduce slowly so you know there is storage for everything and that your kid wants this thing in their life/room. If they love an object but don’t play with it, clean it and put it in a shadow box on the wall. Old blankets, favorite teddy bears, and little toy cows make good bedroom decorations. If you have too many toys for the space separate into 3-4 containers and rotate, taking old toys out every month or so and giving the kid a new box (this works well for apartments and quarantine boredom). HOW TO RAISE A 5yo RIGHT:  - reinforce good choices with praise - explain why a bad choice is a bad choice - remember they are not a Bad Kid, they are a kid making a Bad Choice - kids will become what you tell them they are, choose wisely - learn their love language and show affection - if a kid asks WHY it’s okay to say, “I don’t know.” - teach a kid HOW to think not WHAT to think - the Socratic method works great but you will get wild answers at this age (Why do you think this happened? Because aliens ate the marshmallows.... fair enough. It’s a valid guess when you’re 5.) - teach body consent - do not force kids to hug or accept kisses from anyone if they don’t want it, not even grandma - set boundaries on your time and theirs (It’s after bedtime which means mommy is only available for emergencies. We will write down your question about the color of dinosaur eggs and look it up tomorrow. Good night. I love you.) - lock the door before having fun with your partner - check under the bed too, 5yos think it is hilarious to sneak under beds and you do not want to hear giggling from under the bed as your partner goes down on you - let them make choices about food, family trips, ect - let them help in the kitchen - give them chores so they learn to work - if you don’t know the answer, say so! you can look it up together - if you aren’t feeling well, say so! Tell the kid you need a time out to calm down, a nap, or a sick day laying on the couch while they watch a Disney movie on repeat. It’s okay. You’re teaching them to be human.  Look... not to brag, but all my kids can cook. Everyone over 10 does their own laundry. I haven’t had to run a dishwasher in almost 9 years because my kids do the dishes. Life with kids is a lot easier if everyone does some of the work instead of the parent doing all of the work.