my 7 and 8 year old do dishes together, 8 dd washes, 7 ds rinses. they are usually pretty clean, but we do our differently. i run a sink full of "HOT" soapy water, and put all silverware and cups in first, let sit till water is cooler and they have soaked a bit, then they wash cups, then i add the plates and bowls, let sit for a bit, might add a bit more hot water or soap, then they wash, then they wash the silver ware. then i either warm and and let pans and such soak, or if water is dirty, drain, run fresh hot water, let pans soak and then they wash. they havent ever left food on, partly bc it soaks off. i will also add, we scrape and rinse dishes most of the time after we eat, so they arent extremely yucky, but need the rest washed with soapy hot water. on a rare occasion, i will need to do the pans, bc they are messy. we do this alot. but my glasses and cups were getting stained from tea, so we are back to the dishwasher for now. they rinse and load, and then unload and put away. this isnt every day, but probably 50% of the time. it is handy, thats for sure! and they feel needed and useful.

I would trust my 4 year old to do a better job on the idshes than my 6 or 8 year olds. She likes the water too much! She'll play in there "Washing dishes" all day if I didn't need the sink for something else! :)

Ds7 loves to wash dishes, and he does a better job than dss 14 and 10! I guess it depends on the kid:)

We have a dishwasher but we still have dishes that need washed everyday. My 6 year old would love it if I let her wash them but right now I let her dry them all as I wash them. I will probably let her try and wash some here soon. I know she would do a good job because she is very picky (a couple times she has re-made MY bed because it wasn't *right*... lol)!

Erin
Alexis - 6; Austin - 5; Rylee - 3; McKenzee Grace - 1

With mine, not until age 9.

Also, I do the sharp knives, anything glass, and the pots and pans.

They only wash cups, plates, bowls, and ordinary utensils.

I fill the sink with hot, sudsy water and let everything soak a bit, ad then they can wash, and they have rubber gloves - pink for my daughter, yellow for my son.

The little ones (ages 6 and 7) are able to clear the table and wipe the mats.

HTH!:)


Rejoicing in JESUS,
Mommy4Jesus

My daughter who just turned 11 was washing dishes when she was 10. She was eager to wash them when I told her I would pay her a $1 per load. She washes very good, only once or twice did I have to send something back. My seventy something year old Aunt, on the other hand, still cannot wash a dish to save her life. They are always slick when she gets done with them YUK!

Sounds like I'm over-estimating or all you guys under-estimating. My son age 4 can do a really nice job with the dishes. I just have him do them before they're dried on. Daughter almost 3 helps with rinsing. I think too often we under-estimate what our kids can do. No dishes are not always 100% clean, but how will they learn if I don't let them try?

Raising servants for the Lord.

Trust me, I'm not underestimating my 4 year old. I let her play in the sink (which is learning), but I would never eat off a dish she washed. Sorry, but just can't do it. Also, my dinner plates a big, and our glasses are fragile. It is too much of a risk of them breaking something and getting hurt. I just broke a Pyrex 9x13 yesterday. Had a huge mess in the kitchen.

My 7 year old does an OK job. She only washes what she actually ate off of. Pots and pans are still just a bit heavy for her. Also, she can't reach the water spigots to turn on the water to rinse the dishes. (I have to put my dish drainer in the 2nd sink, so filling it with fresh water for rinsing is not an option). Yes, I know she could stand on a chair, but I don't really want to start that.

Sometimes I think I'm too picky, and my standards are too high. My mom didn't keep the house very clean, and I have a tendency go overboard now.

This post was edited on Aug 21, 2009 04:00 PM