How many of you had "chores" assigned to you when you were younger? I did. In my childhood home, I was asked to collect the trash, wash the dishes or load the dishwasher after a meal, mow the lawn, and make my bed before leaving for school. Did I like it at the time? No. Did I learn from it? Yes. 

In her book, Gift of Failure, Jessica Lahey writes about the importance of chores or as she calls them "family contributions." While they both refer to the same tasks, the terms have a different feel and significance to them. Family contributions "sends an important message about significance, that when you help out, you make a big difference for the family." In addition to making a difference, I would also argue that it builds essential life skills, including time management, perseverance and commitment to something greater than yourself. These skills can also impact a student in the classroom. Lahey goes on further to say that when we exclude our kids from household jobs, "we encourage them to be freeloaders and stick with things they are good at: watching, being waited on, and making that face of perplexed impatience, hoping an adult will pass by and rescue them." Instead, let them fail at first with these minor tasks so that when larger ones come along later in life they have a skill set that will help them complete the job. Protecting a child from failure or hard tasks isn't helping to prepare them for life outside their childhood home. 

Consider assigning or asking your child how he or she might help with family contributions. Let them be creative and help them to understand they play a role, too. They'll thank you for it later.