The Importance of Giving Young Kids Jobs

Most toddlers love to please their parents and teachers. When asked to clean up toys in the classroom, the students beam with pride as they take this responsibility seriously. They will be equally eager to clean their toys at home if they feel that it is their job.

As young as two years old, you can explain to your child that everyone in a family has certain jobs to do and these jobs are very important. His job is to put his toys away when he is finished playing with them. You can help him at first by showing him how to sort the toys (also a great learning skill) such as the action figures from the animals. Be sure your shelves are organized and there is plenty of space on a low shelf that he can easily reach.




When he’s finished, make a big deal about what a great job he did and how helpful he is to you. You might even create a sticker chart that you will fill up with a sticker each time he cleans up. When you reach ten stickers, he gets a special treat, such as an ice cream cone, small toy, special play date, etc.

There are many jobs that kids can do at very young ages. You will need to add more responsibilities as you believe your child can handle them. Helping set the table, putting laundry away, and putting non-breakable groceries in the cupboard are all jobs that toddlers can handle. They will gain pride in helping you and will learn the value of becoming a responsible member of the family.

Mom’s Clubs are Great for Mothers and Tots

I had the wonderful opportunity to meet with moms at the Mom’s Club in Voorhees, NJ. These women get together once a month to chat with each other and watch their children interacting with one another. They share problems, questions, solutions and the trials and tribulations of being a mom at every stage of development.

These women also meet on other occasions to enjoy a girl’s night out at the movies, a shopping spree, or other events without the kids. Coming from different places, backgrounds, and walks of life, they bond over motherhood.

It was great fun to see how the children enjoyed each other. At varying ages, the older toddlers took great interest in the babies, and visa versa. They sent cars flying across the floor to other kids, built block towers, colored, and enjoyed using their imaginations. They rarely even acknowledged their own mothers with so much stimulation around them.




It is often scary and confusing to encounter something with your child for the first time. Whether it’s as simple as questions relating to breast or bottle feeding, or more serious, such as wondering if your child is reaching an appropriate milestone, having a network of people to talk to is invaluable.

Check to see if there’s a parenting group in your town. If not, it is easy to start one. Inquire at your local library or go on-line. The friendships you make will help you navigate the uncharted territory of motherhood, and your kids will enjoy their new friends.

Hero Kids

I am constantly urging parents to demonstrate charity to their children through their actions, so it always impresses me when the kids see the lesson and carry them forward. Congratulations to thirteen year old Jenny Silver who has given over 5,000 stuffed bears to children in need over the holidays since starting Bowling for Bears at the ripe young age of nine. For her efforts, the eighth grader at Rosa International Middle School in Cherry Hill has been chosen as one of 12 award winners in the Build-A-Bear Workshop Community Service Program.

Though only nine years old when Hurricane Katrina hit, Jenny was touched by the disaster. “I wanted to make sure the kids who were affected would still receive holiday gifts, and would know that they weren’t forgotten and that people were thinking of them,” she recalls.

Seeking out the “fun” in fundraiser, Jenny and her family held a bowling event and invited guests to seek out sponsorships in order to play. Each year, in early December, enough money is raised to provide $8 bears to hundreds of children in need. “We have t-shirts, food, and it’s a really fun event,” says Jenny.

For the first two years, Jenny donated the bears to Children’s Hospital in New Orleans and the surrounding area. In the third year she gave her donations to The Children’s Hospital in Philadelphia and other local kids in need in Philly and Camden.

“It really meant a lot to me to be recognized with so many amazing kids who have done such great things,” says Jenny. “It was an honor to be a part of it.”