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5 Year Old Chores
This is a well-rounded list of 5 year old chores your child can easily do.
You’ll find lots of practical life stuff here, that fosters good lifelong habits, togetherness, and sense of belonging. You’ll be able to walk away with not only chore ideas, but scripts you can use to encourage cooperation.
When we frame our household tasks as teamwork; a shared responsibility, and “we have these wonderful things AND it’s our responsibility to take care of them” mindset, you will naturally integrate your child into the family flow of necessary responsibilities.
“Parents should present chores in a way that makes little ones feel they’re contributing to the family,” says Robert Billingham from Indiana University in Bloomington. By setting the table, kids see they are successful, important and needed, all of which help build their self-esteem. Weekly chores teach children life skills like responsibility and setting priorities that will be important for the future.” –Michigan State University
The 5 year old chores I’m about to share are what I use with my twins and the children at my Montessori-inspired Playschool (where applicable).
I’m all about being mindful about how I talk to preschoolers about ‘chores’, I actually don’t even use the word. I don’t like chores, not sure anyone does. So, often times the energy and response to the word alone is mehhhhhh.
Instead, I create house rules, call them responsibilities, focus on family teamwork, pair a gratitude statement with each task (I show you examples below), give them time and space to take care of the responsibilities in their own way, and if they’re not motivated right away, I give them a minute or ask what will make it easier for them.
I’ve found that being intentional in this way makes cleanup and housework FAR easier and more enjoyable for everyone in the family, while still building good habits and sense of responsibility with the children. So, let’s get into the 22 best 5 year old chores!
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1. Put folded laundry Away in designated Area
Simple and totally something that is a lot easier when the whole family helps!
We parents usually fold, the kids put away as we go, and then we all chill and watch a movie or show.
I usually say out loud what I’d want others to say (gratitude statement), to plant the seed of gratitude and get the children into the habit of recognizing and vocalizing things to be grateful for.
For example, as we bring the laundry into the living room, I might say “thank you daddy for washing all of our play clothes! We love when they are clean. Let’s all grab our clothes, put them away and then watch a movie. Teamwork and done!”
From about 1-1.5 years old, my twins have been involved with choosing their own outfits, which means clothes don’t stay perfectly folded. So when i do laundry, I just lay their clothes nicely or maybe fold once, and I have them take their little piles to their designated closet.
It’s not perfect, it gets messy (especially when they are picking out their own clothes to wear) but it’s important to allow them the independence they crave from choosing and grabbing on their own, self expression from the outfits they want to wear, to the learning and maintaining of responsibilities.
There is a designated area where their clothes go and I tell them to put them there. Everything has a place, even though it gets messy. This makes it easy for them to get into a routine themselves – socks in the bin by the door, undies in this basket, pants in this drawer, etc…
Side note: this basketball hoop hamper is fun for preschoolers!
2. Help water the plants
Indoor or outdoor plants, this is a wonderful 5 year old chore task for preschoolers to do! It teaches responsibility, how to take care of our environment, how to be gentle, and you can even talk about each plant species and what it does for the earth/home.
Getting your child their very own watering can and deciding on a place to keep it, will make watering fun, special, and easily accessible, regularly.
3. Put toys away after playing with them
In my home, that is also home to my Montessori-inspired playschool, I keep 7-9 intentional sets of toys laid out on trays and rotate those toys. Everything has a place and isn’t overwhelming to look at or put away. This keeps the house amazingly de-cluttered, clean, while still allowing for lots of creative, intentional play.
One of our play rules is: “play then put away.”
Montessori activities typically focus on one skill at a time, are placed in wooden trays for easy transportation for the child, to and from the shelf where they belong, and keep a child’s attention for extended periods of time. This is why just 7-9 toys is more than enough, for about a month at a time. Then, we rotate.
Rotating toys on a toy shelf (or even on the floor along a wall in an open play space, like I have it) is common practice. This keeps things organized, fresh, and accessible for your child.
You can see my full list of Montessori toys for preschoolers here.
4.Help unload certain items from dishwasher
Instead of putting your child in front of a show or an activity while you do the dishes, get them involved. Helping mom and dad with certain dishes is an excellent 5 year old chore!
Many children want to help and others might not be aware that washing and putting dishes away is part of how a house runs.
Help them get aware by making it a family rule: “We all eat here, have all the yummy food we need, and we all help take care of our dishes for eating.”
Maybe each night after dinner you as a family spend x time doing dishes together. Then, once they’ve helped with a few things, have them go off to their ipad, while you finish up. Fair! Family teamwork! And manageable.
You might say something like: “I see your favorite cup lid! Grab the lids and put them in the cabinet. You’re in charge! Mommy’s got the big plates and daddy has the pots. We’re a family and a team!”
This speaks to their pride and sense of belonging. This is wonderful for motivation without needing bribes or goodies, shaming, punishing, or forcing.
5. help unload grocery bags (and help shop off of list)
Most children love to grab bags, carry them, unload and place things on the counter, making this a very natural 5 year old chore to encourage!
“Look at all this delicious food we have! Let’s pull everything out and start putting it in our pantry for when we are ready to eat it. Hold it tight and walk slowly. Leave the glass stuff for mom, just to be safe. You can be in charge of the fruits, boxes of cereal/pasta, cans…”
I have snack drawers, kid plates/cups/utensil drawers, and a pantry section here. All of the kids are familiar with the different areas and have access at designated times – when it’s snack, meal or put away food from the store time.
Giving your child access to these places at certain times, gives them the control they crave, the power of choice for the snacks you have available and makes them feel comfortable and at home in their home.
Having this setup is a HUGE help when it comes to overcoming picky eating. I have a FREE full guide on transforming picky eating. If it’s something you struggle with, I highly recommend this free resource.
If you take your preschooler along for shopping, discuss the shopping list beforehand, tell them you are only grabbing what is on the list (and maybe one cool thing for them), and maybe put them in charge of crossing off each item on a piece of paper.
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6. Dump their bathroom garbage
Unlike the bigger, messy kitchen garbage, your child’s bathroom rubbish can is probably just paper towels or toilet paper. This is an easy 5 year old chore your child can do while mommy or daddy dumps the kitchen garbage.
Remember that children are programmed to want to be involved, so use that natural instinct and encourage them to do similar little tasks alongside you, when you do bigger ones.
“Mommy’s dumping the kitchen garbage! Go check your bathroom bin. If it has anything in it, let’s dump it together!”
Maybe you do this once a week at a certain time and tell them to keep an eye if they notice it getting full, they can dump it so it doesn’t spill all over the floor.
I like to add little compliments like “look at us babe, taking care of our house!” Or, “we are the best team! I love when you help me.”
Saying things like this makes all the difference between having a child who enjoys doing things with their parent and one who doesn’t.
7. Line Up all shoes at the door/in mudroom
If your home is anything like mine, the entryway can get very busy with everyone’s shoes strewn around, especially on a busy in and out kind of day!
An easy 5 year old chore for your child could be to find the pairs and line up all the shoes on the ground or shelf/cubbies.
You might do this with your preschooler, or you might have them do it while you do another task.
You could say something like, “hmmmm, I wonder if we can find all the matching shoes?! Let’s see! When you find them, put them together on the rack.” Or, “uh oh, we might trip over these shoes when we’re trying to leave. Let’s take a minute and put them all against the wall in pairs, so we have more room. Here’s one, here’s another…”
8. Park outside toys after playing
This is another one that I have the children do daily. It goes along with the play rule – “play then put away.”
I give the children a 10 minute heads up – “10 more minutes and we head inside for lunch! Choose what you want to do for the last 10 minutes, I’ll set the timer.
Then, I’ll give them a 5 minute heads up -“5 more minutes then we’ll park our toys and do lunch!”
Giving them something to look forward to will help them move through the transition and task more easily, rather than getting stuck in the possible momentary thought of ‘I was playing with my favorite toy and now I have to clean.’ Instead, the thought might be ‘Ok, I’ll park these 3 toys then lunch time!”
Finally, I’ll give them a 2 minute heads up and remind them what to do before we head in for lunch – “2 more minutes guys, then we each park 3 toys and head inside for lunch. Listen for the timer and we can race!”
9. Dust
I am not exaggerating when I say this is a favorite chore for 5 year olds! 1-5 year olds, really! They love to choose the duster they want to use, they think the nubby ends are cool and they love to make their way around the house ‘hunting’ for dust, haha!
Very helpful and very cute!
I usually just set the dusters out so they notice them and go on their own, or I might say – “ok, dust hunt! Want the long one, medium, or short one?!”
10. Spray Down & Wipe Windows
Oh the spray bottle. Literally, an all time FAVORITE for all children I’ve ever been around. They can spend 30 minutes, an hour, or more with these things!
So, no wonder cleaning windows is a great 5 year old chore!
I like to fill some kid-designated spray bottles up with water for them and let them use paper towels or kitchen towels and wipe windows. I’ll then go and do ‘one final wipe’, with the a cleaner (I don’t want them to handle any chemicals).
Sometimes they help fill the bottles up with water.
I might say – “Let’s grab our spray bottles and clean the windows!” Or, “Ooooh look at these smudgy windows, we need to grab our spray bottle and towels and clean them!
11. restock toilet paper and/or paper Towels
Maybe your child is like a lot of other preschoolers who enjoys handling toilet paper and paper towels.
Luckily, you’re probably out of the phase where your child is playing with them but, still just as interested in them, which makes restocking toilet paper and/or paper towels a great 5 year old chore!
Keep some stocked where your child can access them as needed, and they’ll most likely replace when they notice it’s low or running out. Or, if they mention there’s none left, you can remind them where the rolls are stocked and to go grab one.
With the Playschool, I’m required to use paper towels in the bathrooms and we end up using a lot, as I’m sure families with young kids can relate to. This paper towel brand pictured above is eco-friendly, so it’s a nice, conscious alternative to traditional paper towels.
12. Help wash the car (and clear out inside)
Let’s go make our car shiny and fresh!
Your child can hose the car down, fill the bucket, use a scrubber mitt, play with the bubbles, rinse the soap off – so many things!
Put some of your favorite music on and show your child how taking care of the things you have, like your car that takes you where you need to go, can be a point of pride and enjoyment.
Letting your preschooler help wash the car is one of those great 5 year old chores that they will probably love!
13. Vacuum A designated area
This simple 5 year old chore is one that I see preschoolers often seek out. They either ask for a turn when they see me doing it or try to grab it on their own when there is a mess (especially because I have the house rule that if we make a mess, we clean it up).
I usually let them do their thing while vacuuming unless it’s too rough or they are fussing with the buttons, rather than actually vacuuming.
I want them to do and learn in their own way, and not feel always judged or watched by me.
If I ask them to vacuum by saying something like – “Ok, let’s all choose two things to help with before bed. Danny you can vacuum the living room or put the trains back in the bin”, I’ll mention a specific area so it doesn’t seem to overwhelming or daunting.
Just how we dread cleaning the ‘whole house’, if we break it down to one room at a time, we are less overwhelmed and less likely to dread it or freeze up about it. Kids are the same.
I honestly hated vacuuming before using a cordless dyson. It is quiet, lightweight, cordless. rechargable, slim, minimalistic and so wonderful. I enjoy vacuuming now and the kids can easily handle it! A must have if you can swing it! I’ve had mine for 5 years now.
14. Sweep A designated area
We mostly use the vacuum for crumbs of the floor, but sometimes with certain cereals or under the table chunks, we opt to sweep.
Just like with vacuuming, I be sure to give specific direction about where to sweep, rather than just say ‘help sweep’. Instead, I might say – “I’m going to start the dishes, you grab the dustpan and get any crumbs from under the table.”
These specific directions can make the task clear and less overwhelming.
Sweeping can be an easy 5 year old chore your child can do, so long as the broom or dustpan set isn’t too big or clunky for their small hands to handle.
This dustpan set pictured above is great for table craft messes like sparkles or beads as well as under the table granola crumbs, and the like. It’s perfect for tiny hands and easy for them to grip and use without getting frustrated or uncomfortable.
This is actually one of the practical life toys listed on my post about Montessori Toys For Preschoolers.
15. put Pillows Back on Couch
If your home is like many other homes with young kids, that often means the pillows are off the couch making forts, building a trail, making slides from the couch to the floor – all the jump around and play things!
Having your child put the pillows back on the couch is a great and simple 5 year old chore that goes along with the ‘play then put away’ house rule.
“Let’s reset the house so we have room to walk and sit, and everything is ready for us tomorrow!”
You might toss the pillows to your child and have them place them on the couch or vice versa. If you have multiple children, they could toss them to one another, or do a race, or see who can carry the most.
There are lots of ways you can make clean up time a chill, calm, part of the family routine, rather than some big, angry, burdening task that everyone is grumpy about, more often than not.
16. Help choose & rotate toys in play area
If you don’t already do it and are highly skeptical of the Montessori toy rotation philosophy, but are also overwhelmed and irritated by all your kid’s toys everywhere, I challenge you to try a Montessori toy set up and rotation for 1 month.
Get your child involved with choosing and setting it up. Let them have control and choice in their area, within the limits you set (7-9 sets of toys, ie: trains and tracks, animals figurines and a world map, puzzles, blocks, mr potato head etc…)
Then, each month, you two take a morning or afternoon and rotate what is out. You will be amazed at how new old toys can feel, the focus your child has, the less chaos you will feel when you look around or have to clean up, and you’ll probably notice your child’s behavior change too.
Plus, they will be learning in a more developmentally nurturing way with less clutter and more intentional toys set out and ready to be ‘worked on’ as opposed to bins and bins of things and random pieces strewn all around.
17. Feed/Water Pet
Helping take care of the family pet is a great chore for a 5 year old. They can easily scoop the food or take a little cup of water and pour it into their dishes.
Keeping the food close to the dishes will minimize mess. But, if you can’t keep them close, you can pre-scoop some food and pre-pour some water, then have your child walk those over to the dishes.
It’s good to remember that messes will happen as your 5 year old is not an adult and therefore, will be less aware, balanced, careful…
I’m all about the natural consequences. In this case – “if you make a mess, you clean it up.” And reassuring reminders that build self-esteem like – “you’re still learning and accidents happen, no worries, let’s clean it up.”
18. Set The table
“Dinner’s almost ready! Jack, help get the table set, so everyone can eat when I put the food down on the table.”
Giving directions without asking typically gets a better response because they are less inclined to answer ‘no’ out of a need for control. Likewise, saying it this way gives them a minute or so to finish up what they’re engrossed in at the moment.
If it’s hard for them to stop doing what they’re doing and switch to this 5 year old chore of helping set the table, you could say something like – “you can go straight back to your magnet tile tower after dinner. Please help with the table now since dinner will be ready in 1 minute.”
After they help or as they are setting it up, you might say – “thank you love, you are the best at setting the table forever.” Or, “Yay, thank you so much, you’re the best! Now we can eat!” This makes them feel seen, appreciated, and recognized withing the family as an important part of things.
Using a Montessori placemat visual guide like the one pictured above is very helpful for preschoolers and will allow them to need less help from anyone else to get the job done.
19. Clear their plate/utensils & Push chair in
This is another one of my house rules here, so it’s a daily chore for 5 year olds, and all the walking toddlers.
I operate with the respectful parenting mindset from Janet Lansbury, who believes that babies are ready and eager to be a part of the world around them; to try things on their own; to make decisions for themselves…
So, with that in mind, house rules like – ‘after you eat, you push in your chair and take your bowl to the sink’, really is more about teaching awareness of how things are done, rather than a burden or a ‘chore’.
It teaches them how to care for their setting and their belongings, how to make things easier for them (not have to go back to the table again and clear off, dishes ready to wash), and a sense of responsibility.
I recently found these non-plastic wheat straw plates pictured above, on Amazon for the kids. Personally, I don’t care for the flavors silicone retains even after washing and I don’t want toxins from plastics either, so I was happy to find these. Dishwasher and microwave safe, and non breakable.
20. Help Prep Meals
I know letting young children help in the kitchen can be a love it or hate thing for many parents. Personally, I love it because I fully understand and see the benefits involving them does for picky eating, bonding, and a sense of belonging. And, I know how to set up the kitchen space to keep it from being an overwhelming mess.
My best recommendations for having your 5 year old help in the kitchen is to:
- Use a kitchen helper learning tower for safety so you can be worry-free about falls, and hands-free to cook
- Give them 1-3 simple, slight tasks to help with (peel 3 bananas and put them in the mixing bowl, sprinkle pre-scooped cheese onto these 2 tortillas)
- Position their tower away from anything you don’t want them touching and only place what they can help with, within their reach (ie: a big bowl and a box of pasta they can open and dump in the bowl or a big bowl of cooked pasta and a bottle of marinara they can pour into the bowl)
- Have them come down, and you remove the tower, when they are done with the 1-3 things you let them help with (maybe go set the table or work on their magnet tiles until the rest is ready)
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21. Help Rake leaves
Get some real tools their size and let them have at those crunchy fall leaves with you!
“We are so lucky to have this beautiful backyard to sit outside, have picnics, and run and play in! We all take care of our backyard to keep it clean and ready for playing!”
“During autumn, the leaves fall from the trees and it starts to get cooler, so we are responsible to rake the leaves and put them in this bin. Want to jump in them before we put them in the bin?”
My twins love helping myself and my husband rake the leaves, throw them around, jump in the leaves and use their step stools to reach the bin. We make it a family affair, even if it’s only for 15 minutes. That help counts!
Raking leaves is a great 5 year old chore to have your child do!
22. Help Organize Snack Cabinet/Drawer
Here at my home and Playschool, I have a snack drawer where the toddlers and preschoolers can choose their own snacks – at snack time. Otherwise, they are not allowed in the drawer. This is one of those house rules.
The joy of choosing, grabbing what they want themselves, the peacefulness of snack time, and the less pickiness, are all wonderful benefits of having the snack drawer. Likewise, I don’t have to stand there in the pantry hovering over them asking – “do you want this? this? thiiiis?” while they whine or fuss for something.
I choose what is in the drawer and when they can access it, they choose what they want from the drawer and get to serve themselves.
One of the chores for 5 year olds that goes along with this snack drawer is, restocking it! They can refill things and organize it to their liking.
22. Take their bath toys to the dishwasher
This could be a simple weekly chore for your 5 year old that will have them aware of and taking care of their beloved toys.
You can teach them about germs and what to look for when something might need cleaning (slimy, moldy).
Otherwise, taking their toys to the dishwasher and running them through a wash each week will keep them nice and clean, and safe to play with!
Maybe you have a set day for this or save a reminder to your phone for it.
A CHore list visual aid can be very helpful
A simple chore list visual aid like this gets your child hands on with seeing and completing their chores.
This customizable chore list is minimal and can be filled in as chores change. Your child will slide the bar over when they complete the chore.
If your child isn’t fully reading yet, you can draw in little images that they can identify with each task.
Maybe after they complete certain tasks you verbally recognize their efforts and success, give them a high five, a special goodie, or make their favorite meal for them. Little things like this can do wonders for self-esteem, bonding, and motivation!
Why chores are important for 5 year olds
Your child, at 5 is more capable than ever before, and is still in a very absorbent time. Making sense of their responsibilities and how to do them will build your child’s sense of belonging, responsibility, capability, and self-esteem.
These life skills will help shape their future.
In addition, they will experience what it means to be in a healthy, everyone-helps-one-another family dynamic. They will learn discipline and value the things that they have, which will make them more appreciative and grateful.
A Harvard study found that children who were given chores become more independent adults.
The positive impacts are bountiful when ‘chores’ are about contributing to a household you feel at home in, and doing them with people you love, who love you back.
how do you introduce chores to a 5 year old?
The earlier you can introduce practical life tasks (aka chores – you can tell I don’t like or use this word myself, can’t you haha), the better.
Remember that from the time we are babies, we are built to engage in this world – to move our limbs, use our voice, walk, create, problem solve, discover – all of these things! And tasks that we often call chores such as, brushing hair, caring for our things, washing our dirty dishes, are all just normal practical life things that they need to do for their days to happen.
So, including them into your daily, weekly, and monthly routine is the name of the game to make it most natural and normal for your child.
Here are some helpful tips for introducing chores to a 5 year old:
- Give them a heads up that you will be starting something new in a couple days
- Show them the to do list visual guide and normalize it being a part of their life
- Let them choose where to keep it, ie – in their room or on the refrigerator
- Use positive language when talking about adding household tasks to their routine, like: “this is a normal part of our lives”, “we all work together as a family”, “each of us contributes and helps one another”, “we are grateful for all we have, so we care for our things”, and “everybody in our family has an important role”
- Allow autonomy (they may spill the dog food the first week, but they will improve. And, instead of you rushing to do it, let them clean it up.) This shows them they are capable, builds resiliency, and they will appreciate how you let them do and learn in their own way, and at their own pace. You’ll notice they are more willing to participate when they have autonomy and you aren’t helicoptering.
- You decide what the chores are and give them 2-3 options when it’s time to do them, ie – “Ok, house care break! We are all going to put some things away before bed. You want to dump the bathroom rubbish or vacuum all the crumbies from under the table? I’ll race you to the kitchen, go!”
tips for getting your 5 year old to do chores with minimal fuss
- When you think about starting chores with your child, consider setting house rules and focusing on words like “help”, “responsibilities”, and “teamwork”, like I do, rather than chores. You want to set healthy lifelong habits and motivate your child, and these are great ways to do it.
- Keep your energy light and positive and grateful, so it can be contagious for your child to catch those vibes too. “We all get to live and play here, so we all take care of our home. We love our toys and having a clean bath to splash in. It’s all of our responsibility to take care of our things.”
- When these house tasks are made less about punishment and delivered without yelling, your child will have a positive association with ‘keeping their house’.
- Use statements instead of asking, ie: “You’re in charge of setting the table! Here are the forks…”
- Be specific with what they need to do, ie: “Mommy is sweeping, you grab the vacuum and find all the crumbs under the table! Teamwork!”
- Don’t spend your free time cleaning, you will burn out and resent the tasks and your family. Instead, set house rules (liek “play then put away”) and have designated times where everyone helps with specific tasks.
- Maybe play some favorite music while cleaning up.
- Take emotional break resets if you find yourself yelling about cleaning. Step away, take some voo breahts, apologize and re-approach.
- Know that your house is lived in by a busy, loving family, and it may be messier than you’d like at times. This is normal.
- Avoid prioritizing a perfectly clean home over emotional connection to your child and spouse.
- Make it fun sometimes, be silly sometimes
- Verbally or physically acknowledge their efforts – a wink, a thumbs up with a smile, a “you did it all by yourself! You are getting so strong babe!”, can go a loooong way with self-esteem and motivation
- Use treats sparingly, as depending fully on them does not build internal motivation, appreciation, responsibility, or awareness. It just has them focused on getting the goodie, so it is not helpful for character building
In this blog post, I talk about 5 ways you can easily get your child to clean up. I use these strategies daily with 6 toddlers and preschoolers – they work!
Let me know in the comments below which ones you are going to try with your 5 year old. And, follow me on Instagram for more conscious parenting content.
