At the beginning of June Jeff and I headed off to celebrate our anniversary, and take a week to reevaluate it all while the kids stayed with grandparents. One of our decisions during that time is the kids had grown up in the past year, and they were ready for some more responsibility.
So, we decided to give the boys a pocket knife, and Princess got an American Girl doll.
Now, there are some rules to these gifts, the whole point is teaching responsibility.
Rules for using a pocket knife
- Until we say otherwise your pocket knife is not to leave the house.
- Your pocket knife is either in your pocket, or in the drawer next to your bed.
- You may not have your pocket knife out if your friends are over.
- If Mommy or Daddy finds your knife it is in time out for 3 days.
- Always clean your knife after using it.
- Cut away from yourself.
As they become more responsible and prove they can handle the current rules, they will be loosened up. One boy already has his knife in time out because of leaving it out where anyone could take it. I am very thankful to my friend for giving me the rules her son had.
Rules for American Girl Dolls
- They do not go outside.
- When you are not playing with them, they go in their doll bed.
- If I find her laying out on the floor, she will be taken away for 3 days.
- You NEVER cut her hair.
- You do not color on her.
American Girl Dolls are expensive. They are not something to buy on a whim, and I want Princess to understand that, and to treat her doll accordingly. I still want her to play with it, because that’s what dolls are for, but I want her to understand this is a big gift, and it is a privilege, not a right. She has done very well with her doll, and in the month she’s had her has not lost her once.
So, how is this related to homeschooling? Well, I firmly believe that homeschooling isn’t just book knowledge, it’s the ability to function in society as well. One of the necessary skills is responsibility, and you learn that by being given some. In all truth, these are not big responsibilities for an adult, but for an 8 and 6 year old, these are huge.
So, what responsibilities have your kids received lately? Or what real life homeschooling has gone on with you? Share what you’ve been up to in the linkie.
And see what the other hosts have been doing for a real life homeschool, then I’ll see you back in a month for the next one.
The Real Life Homeschooling Blog Hop co-hosts are:
Tabitha from Meet Penny
Jill from Enchanted Homeschooling Mom
Aurie from Our Good Life
Amy from Are We There Yet?
Sonya from Becoming a Strong Woman of God
Heather from Homeschooling on Faith and Coffee
Leann from Hands on Homeschooler
Sherri from Our Front Porch Looking In
Erin from Royal Baloo
Renee from Next Gen Homeschool
Megan from Homeschooling etc.
Stephanie from Bowmania
Ticia from Adventures in Mommydom
Karyn from Teach Beside Me
Jamie from Walking in High Cotton
Selena from Look! We’re Learning!
Rebecca from Homeschooling Autism and More
Andrea from No Doubt Learning
Stacey from Layered Soul
Lisa from Farm Fresh Adventures
Tiffany from Life & Lessons From a Country Road
Rachel from Rooms of Knowledge
Marla from Marla’s Motherhood Musings
Dusty from To the Moon and Back
Kelli from Adventurez in Child ‘Rearing
We have just bought some wood carving supplies as Quentin has become interested in woodworking. The knife hasn’t arrived yet, but we have already been discussing the rules for it.
I bet he’s really excited about it. What rules are you coming up with?
Ticia- great post! 🙂 We also have AG dolls and we had to set up some ground rules from Day 1. Those dolls are way too expensive to be careless with!
I think it’s great that your boys got their own pocket knives. We also spend more time thinking of responsibility. One of the rules is that there is no computer time without straightening out her room and her desk.
I just prepped and stood by (listening from another room) as T made his first call to a potential employer about a part time job…the learning curve gets steeper when you move into the teen years – jobs/money/cars/dating!!! It’s good to get a run at it now with “small” things.
I like the rules for the pocket knives especially! We are focusing a lot on doing chores and asking for things nicely – and saying thank you and sorry.
Great agreements for building responsibility! We’ve had similar rules and arrangements when my son got his first pocket knife and my daughter, her AG doll. And I think it’s so great to start young with the ideas of responsibility and appreciation for safety and cost of an item. Great post!
Responsibility is incredibly important in our house as well. T11 has had a multi tool which if found lying about is confiscated for a month (we have two littles so it is more dangerous for us). The girls both love to cook, but if they do not clean up after themselves to a point that I can’t tell they’ve been in the kitchen, then they are not allowed to cook for a week. If any sewing supplies are left out, no sewing for a week. I am a meany, meany mummy!!