Does everyone else's teens do their own laundry?

[Anonymous]

It's not about learning. It's about taking-on tasks that don't need to be done by others. It's entitlement. Mom, your time is valuable too. I know they are busy. They're busy w/school work and practices, and them being successful, doing the best they can in school, is important to you. But still.

It doesn't always look perfect, the teens doing laundry. Too often they fish-out what they want to wear, wash that, adding other things. Not completing the task of doing all their laundry.

I keep a close eye on sports uniforms, anything smelly, that they wash those things immediately

[Anonymous]

I did my kids laundry till they went to college. It was more efficient that way ..fewer loads. They left home and now do their own. No issues. I think cooking is more important/complicated to learn than laundry. ..but kids learn that too

[Anonymous]

My kid helps with the process vs does it all himself. He's 15. He sorts, starts and switches loads, folds, and delivers to the appropriate room. We share the work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our washing machine is top load and I have to stand on my tiptoes to barely reach the bottom. So I haven’t pushed laundry for our kids who are shorter than me. Is that just us?

This is one of the reasons my kids do the laundry! I’m short and my boys have been taller than me for years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't think it's important for teens to do their own laundry. I do think it's important that teens contribute to the household in a real way. If it makes more sense for your household for you to do all the laundry (particularly if weekends are busy and you work from home, that makes sense, or if it's just a chore you don't mind) then great. Maybe instead your teen is cooking dinner twice a week or is in charge of the dishes, or does two walks a day with the dog, or vacuums weekly, or something.

You do need to make sure they know how to do the laundry before they're 18, but if their chores are something else, that's fine.

I think the real problem is teens that are not expected to contribute to the household in any real way. That's bad.

Agree. "They have lots of activities" is not a reason for my own kids to be excused.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I never did my laundry, or much of any chore, until I moved out of my parents' house. Same for my husband. My kids did a lot more vacuuming and dusting of our house than my husband and I when we were kids, because it's a chore I personally detest, ha.

We all did very well when we moved out. It's not hard to do laundry, or any other chore!

I've spent 15+ years on DCUM and it's always very amusing to see parents try to one-up each other on that topic and claim that it prepares kids to be independent or something. The 3-4 year olds unloading the dishwasher is a particularly ridiculous example I've seen multiple times over the years. There's no learning curve to speak of. I showed my oldest how to work the washer and dryer a week before he went to college, and he never had any trouble. He did practically zero cooking at home, and uses his shared apartment kitchen more than any of his roommates, just by watching YouTube videos for his favorite meals. He keeps an eye on the cleaning schedule of the shared bathroom, and is the only one who brought a vacuum, apparently, and uses it.

I like to run a tight ship at home, and it's easier in terms of household water use and planning if I do the laundry for everyone. We also eat as a family as much as can, and most of the time we parents do the cooking. Kids take leftovers to school.

If your kids want to participate, great. If they're super busy and it stresses them out, there's no reason to force them. They're going to learn rapidly as soon as they need to.

Yup. I've always done the laundry. And unloaded the dishwasher. I let my kid play video games, drink juice and gasp, even soda. I'm a DCUM failure but somehow raised a successful adult.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When my son went away to college he had to help other kids figure out how to use the laundry machines in the dorms. He was shocked they had no life skills.

That’s quite a leap.

So weird. Kids are learning on you tube how to build computers but these kids needed her child to learn how to do laundry. LOLZ

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I never did my laundry, or much of any chore, until I moved out of my parents' house. Same for my husband. My kids did a lot more vacuuming and dusting of our house than my husband and I when we were kids, because it's a chore I personally detest, ha.

We all did very well when we moved out. It's not hard to do laundry, or any other chore!

I've spent 15+ years on DCUM and it's always very amusing to see parents try to one-up each other on that topic and claim that it prepares kids to be independent or something. The 3-4 year olds unloading the dishwasher is a particularly ridiculous example I've seen multiple times over the years. There's no learning curve to speak of. I showed my oldest how to work the washer and dryer a week before he went to college, and he never had any trouble. He did practically zero cooking at home, and uses his shared apartment kitchen more than any of his roommates, just by watching YouTube videos for his favorite meals. He keeps an eye on the cleaning schedule of the shared bathroom, and is the only one who brought a vacuum, apparently, and uses it.

I like to run a tight ship at home, and it's easier in terms of household water use and planning if I do the laundry for everyone. We also eat as a family as much as can, and most of the time we parents do the cooking. Kids take leftovers to school.

If your kids want to participate, great. If they're super busy and it stresses them out, there's no reason to force them. They're going to learn rapidly as soon as they need to.

I will respectfully disagree with the bolded. My teens are expected to do chores not just so they learn the skills, but because helping out is part of what family does for each other as part of a household. I do not want to raise future adults (of either gender, to be clear) who don't pitch in and do their part.

[Anonymous]

Yes. Started around maybe 12 or 13? I think it's a very important skill.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When my son went away to college he had to help other kids figure out how to use the laundry machines in the dorms. He was shocked they had no life skills.

That’s quite a leap.

My DS is an RA and has a laundry seminar each semester. Lots of kids have never done their own laundry. They aren’t embarrassed about it either.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I've always done laundry as it works out best for our family. I did have my kid run a couple of loads senior year and he was good to go. Not a big deal.

Same. It makes more sense to run full loads of whites, colors, towels and bed linens. I use a lot of lingerie bags to protect clothing and hang them dry afterwards. I went over laundry techniques before my son went to college.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes. Started around maybe 12 or 13? I think it's a very important skill.

Can you list the skills that require more than 1 run through?

[Anonymous]

Yes but not until around 15.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I never did my laundry, or much of any chore, until I moved out of my parents' house. Same for my husband. My kids did a lot more vacuuming and dusting of our house than my husband and I when we were kids, because it's a chore I personally detest, ha.

We all did very well when we moved out. It's not hard to do laundry, or any other chore!

I've spent 15+ years on DCUM and it's always very amusing to see parents try to one-up each other on that topic and claim that it prepares kids to be independent or something. The 3-4 year olds unloading the dishwasher is a particularly ridiculous example I've seen multiple times over the years. There's no learning curve to speak of. I showed my oldest how to work the washer and dryer a week before he went to college, and he never had any trouble. He did practically zero cooking at home, and uses his shared apartment kitchen more than any of his roommates, just by watching YouTube videos for his favorite meals. He keeps an eye on the cleaning schedule of the shared bathroom, and is the only one who brought a vacuum, apparently, and uses it.

I like to run a tight ship at home, and it's easier in terms of household water use and planning if I do the laundry for everyone. We also eat as a family as much as can, and most of the time we parents do the cooking. Kids take leftovers to school.

If your kids want to participate, great. If they're super busy and it stresses them out, there's no reason to force them. They're going to learn rapidly as soon as they need to.

I will respectfully disagree with the bolded. My teens are expected to do chores not just so they learn the skills, but because helping out is part of what family does for each other as part of a household. I do not want to raise future adults (of either gender, to be clear) who don't pitch in and do their part.

PP you replied. I've never had a problem with that, because when I ask, my kids always help me out. I just don't institute a chore schedule, and laundry, as I said, is best centralized with one person, me. When I need someone to dust or mop, one of the kids can usually do it. However homework and doing well with their extra-curriculars always takes precedence because I consider those their jobs, just like I have a job. Household care is not as important as work.

[Anonymous]

I taught my 14 year old how to do her laundry last year - she was always complaining about things getting dried that shouldn't be dried, socks going missing, etc. Told her that she is more than welcome to make her life easier and do it on her own so she can have it exactly how she wants And she does!