My son is 7 and while that is FAR from an adult, I do tend to baby him a bit. I have been working on ways to give him more independence since I know it will benefit both of us.
Here are a few responsibilities that help teach your child independence:
Chores: This is the most obvious one, but chores really do help give your kids more independence. We don’t give our son money or an allowance for doing his chores, since that is part of being a family unit. Hudson is responsible for keeping his room & bathroom clean, feeding the dog and other small tasks. Recently, I had him start helping more with laundry (folding & putting away his clothes) and emptying the dishwasher.
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| Typical Mila photobomb |
Kitchen Help: I try to let my son help in the kitchen when I can. He is pretty good at cracking eggs and preparing his own breakfast. He is starting to pack his own school lunch, but I need to set up more of a lunch station where he can pick and choose what he wants before this can become a regular thing.
Plan for the Week: I recently had the opportunity to review the Anchor System from The Buoy Company, which was perfect timing since I have been working on this whole independence thing with Hudson.
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The Anchor System is a weekly cubby system, that helps him get organized for the entire week ahead, by taking just a few minutes on Sunday. Since we all plan for the week then anyway, I figure it is a good habit to get him into now.
The Anchor System comes with everything you need to get your child organized. Your child puts their clothes in for each day, along with whatever they need. (After school activities, school projects, etc.)
Along with the full cubby unit, the Anchor System includes:
- Two Buoy Backpacks
- One Hydration Pouch
- One Magnet Stowage Wallet
- One set of days of the week magnets
- Seven Navigation Magnets
You can hang it two different ways: using the hooks or with the velcro hanger. I used the hooks and hung it on the outside of Hudson’s closet. Since the first two days were too high for him to reach, we made those Saturday and Sunday, because we don’t usually need to plan for those days.
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| Placing his Karate magnet on Wednesday |
Hudson was really excited by the whole thing, and was eager to get started. He quickly caught on, selecting his clothes for every school day, including socks. He put his library book in Monday’s bin… since it was due that day and he didn’t want to forget it. Wednesday he has karate, so he was sure to put his uniform in there as well, and since it was ‘gear day’ this week, he included what he would need in the backpack and hung it on one of the side hooks.
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| Getting his clothes ready for the week! |
He was able to plan for everything he would need for the week and have it read to go in no time. I helped him out the first week, but he quickly caught on and won’t be needing my help next week. He now knows what to expect for the week, since we take a few minutes to talk about what he has going on, and how he needs to plan for it.
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| Don’t forget that library book! |
I love this system and Hudson has been very excited about it… we have been trying it out for close to a month now and he is still excited to get his entire week packed and planned out in just a few minutes. It is also helping him become more independent and responsible. It also speeds up our morning routine, since he doesn’t have to search for items, or remember last minute that something was due. It is all right there.
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| We love our Anchor System! |
Here’s a quick video to see The Anchor System in action!
Be sure to check out The Buoy Company on the web, Facebook and Instagram! Also, I would love to hear different ways you help teach your child independence! As an added bonus, if you type in the code MOMMAGIC at checkout… you will get 20% off your entire order until November 30th! How awesome is that?!
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What a great way to stay organized for the week and hopefully make mornings run a little smoother! So my parents actually gave us an allowance each week although it was way less about doing the chores we needed to do because we were part of the family and more about teaching us how to budget…and now 25 years later I'm so grateful they did that!
Yes he can 'earn' money doing larger projects. (helping dad clean the garage… etc) We do need to work on teaching budgeting better though..
I love this! I am all for teaching kids responsibility and I may or may not have an addiction to planning and organizing systems. I'll have to keep this in mind for my little one!
I was surprised by how much Hudson got into it! He really looks forward to it!
I think this is GREAT! My daughter is only 21 months, but is showing so much interest in helping me cook, clean and fold laundry! I'm trying to involve her as much as I can. I've never heard of the Anchor system, but will definitely check it out. I love to be organized! Sometimes it's hard with all the stuff that comes with a kid though!
You should totally include her in everything! That is awesome that she wants to do all those things with you!
Oh this is awesome! I'm such a sucker for all organization type products. I think it may be a teacher thing haha. I'm all about teaching independence though… It'll make things a lot easier for me if I have help!
I am too! I thought this was the coolest thing when I saw it.. and I was so happy to see my son was excited to use it
Oh my goodness, I love this! My daughter loves being independent, so this is perfect for her. It will give her just the right amount of choice and independence. Love it!
Thank you! My son is really loving it.. I think it is awesome!
yea, the more organization the better. i've always tired to kind of treat my kids like adults (while remembering they're kids). the way i was treated. it helped me learn to communicate and associate with people at a really young age! independence is the goal for sure!
I agree, I try not to speak to my kids like they are kids.. and I am sure to involve them in decisions, etc. I think it is a good way to be! 🙂
Great tips! I have to work on this with my son…I hear "I can't, I need help" …gotta get him to try more on his own so your ideas will help. Thank you!
Yes! My son is always saying he needs help too, but he really took to this!! He is getting better with each week that goes by… which I guess is the point! ha! 😉
What a great idea! I am a huge believer in teaching kids independence early on.
I am too, but it is hard for me. I tend to baby him, i think cause he was my first… so I dont give him credit for what he can do.
Super awesome idea!!! My daughter loves to clean at the moment so I'm taking full advantage of that lol… I'm waiting for the day that she realizes cleaning isn't actually fun.
My kids never want to clean so you are LUCKY! (but I have no problem making them! haha!)
My teen needs something like that. Great helpers.
I thought it was a really good idea! So simple, but it got my son really excited to take part.
I am thinking everyone in our house needs a system. This is GENIUS. Yup. I am getting these. I am going to start Caleb and Cohen young. Hopefully, it will work out, hahaha! Seriously, love this organization.
Isnt it the coolest thing ever!? I actually need one of these too..
I think these are some great tips to teach independence! I think I've always been pretty good about teaching my kids to be independent bc I tend to be a bit lazy and not want to clean up after them so they need to hop to it! LOL
I have to push myself.. since I tend to want to do everything for my son. I am so bad that way. I am finally learning to let go a bit 😉
What a brilliant idea. I need this for me! My preschooler is just a bit young for something like this, but when he's a bit older I think I'll try it out.
I know.. I would want one too! ha!