Responsibility is a very important skill that children must learn. It teaches them respect, self-preservation, dedication, and how to have pride in themselves. Many parents try to teach responsibility by giving their children chores and punishing them if they don’t complete them. While this may be part of the strategy, it misses the important lessons that accountability should teach.

Having your child do homework with the threat of punishment teaches them that this is something they have to do to stay out of trouble. Your goal in teaching responsibility should include teaching self-esteem and pride. If you teach your child to be proud of what he has accomplished, the lesson is more likely to stick. Plus, they will carry this lesson with them into adulthood and parenthood.

Consider how the lessons you teach your child will affect him in the workplace when he grows up. If you have taught them to do the bare minimum to stay out of trouble, then they will only do the bare minimum at their job to avoid getting fired. If you teach them to take pride in the work they do and reward them for doing a good job, then they will want to excel in the workplace. This can create a lifetime of opportunities for them.

Challenging your children is also an important part of teaching responsibility. Raising kids who love a challenge can be one of your biggest accomplishments as a parent! Keep the tasks exciting and add special bonuses each week to build excitement for what could be a mundane task. For example, if cleaning the bathroom is part of the chore list, add extra incentives to cleaning the floor behind the toilet or cleaning the baseboards. Offer to double the pay for organizing bathroom cabinets, cleaning the toothpaste tube under the lid, or sanitizing doorknobs and light switches. Children enjoy special prizes and stickers, as well as monetary rewards.

Beyond the normal chores and reward systems, teach your child that teamwork is more fun. Ask your children to help you fold the clothes and come up with little poems, songs and dances while you do it. Don’t let them in on the fact that you might hate doing laundry! Come up with folding challenges that allow your child to win special children’s hangers, like beaded Glam hangers or Slim-Line children’s hangers. Teaching your children to want to succeed can have a huge impact on their lives.