Practical Skills a 10 year old should possess

I have been a bit slow posting recently because I am busy turning my house upside down, making room for the baby and generally reorganising. During my clear out I came across an interesting article by Miranda Ingram from The Times (dated 2004) that I cut out. It is all about the need to let children do things for themselves. Whilst it is tempting to help kids because it is so much quicker, they will never learn how to look after themselves if they are perpetually “babied”.

The article lists the tasks that a 10 year old should be able to do by themselves:

1. Sew on a button
2. Handwash clothes
3. Find their way home (with a map)
4. Use public transport
5. Change a plug
6. Grow a plant
7. Clean and dress a wound
8. Make conversation with an adult
9. Cook a simple meal
10. Iron a shirt
11. Change the bed
12. Use a potato peeler
13. Unblock a sink
14. Feed the pet dog/cat/hamster

I was quite surprised at some of the items on the list. However, thinking back to my childhood I had a good friend who had to cook for the family most nights aged 9. This might seem unusual now but she never questioned it because it was something she needed to do because both her parents worked.

• Remind Yourself How to Make Pancakes For Feb 5th
• Annabel Karmel does Ready Meals
• All Change!
• Lego storage
• Jamie Oliver says working mothers contribute to unhealthy meals

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.