Chores/Responsibilities
John's Most Recent Articles
Solution to Teens Leaving Clothes on Floor
Posted on 1/3/2023
Q: Getting my daughters, fifteen and thirteen, to pick up their clothes from the floors of their rooms requires constant nagging from me. I’m at my wit’s end. Please help me out with...
Read MoreChores for 3-Year-Olds? Yes!
Posted on 5/31/2022
Q: In certain of your books as well as your newspaper column, you have written that children as young as three should be doing daily chores around the home. Exactly what chores are reasonable for...
Read MoreDon't Enable Entitled Teen
Posted on 4/19/2022
A recent online article concerned a mom who refused to pay her teenage daughter for doing household chores. A poll of readers found that an overwhelming majority of them agreed with the...
Read MoreOn Chores, Discipline, Potty-Training
Posted on 3/29/2022
Q: When I give my 5-year-old daughter a chore, she does it, but all the while she is muttering under her breath, huffing and puffing, and so on. Do I discipline that behavior or just let her...
Read MoreIn Defense of ‘Because I Said So'
Posted on 2/1/2022
Q: Concerning chores, another expert recommends giving a child a certain number of chips, like poker chips, every month and if he or she fails to do a chore or doesn’t do it properly, you take a...
Read MoreHow To Help Your Child Get More Grit
Posted on 9/7/2021
It’s all over the web, that “grit” thing. Seems like every day, I get some promo for a webinar on how to get more grit, project more grit, or get in touch with your inner grit. So, allow me to...
Read MoreKeep It Simple With Your Kids During Quarantine
Posted on 4/14/2020
One website is titled “How to Cope with Kids During Coronavirus.” Another, featuring a staged photo of an obviously frazzled mom with a toddler on her lap, tells the reader that “Parents are...
Read MoreLet Your School-Aged Kids Dress Themselves
Posted on 1/9/2019
“So, anyway, after they take showers I lay out their school clothes for the next day. And then….” “Hold on right there,” “How old are your girls again?” “Um,...
Read MoreCar Gives Eric a Chance to Grow Up
Posted on 4/27/2018
"Dad! I've decided what kind of car I want to get when I'm 16! Look at this!" "Eric," I said, brushing away the copy of Car Trader he'd stuck in my face, "I've told you a hundred times, I'm not...
Read MoreRaising a Can-Do Kid
Posted on 3/2/2016
Can-do kids are make-do kids. They usually have several traits that distinguish them from dependent, underconfident children: <b>1. Resourcefulness</b> Today, resourcefulness may mean turning...
Read MoreRecent Questions
Consider Changing Strategy with Young Children
Posted on 3/17/2025
I have a 3 and 5 year old. Recently they’ve taken up stalling and doing a half job when I give instructions. When getting ready for school, putting toys away, to doing evening house chores. I...
Read MoreA Booklover's Guide to Agony
Posted on 2/21/2025
I just received a call from our Head of School stating our 8 year old son threatened another child at school. This is completely out of character for him and when asked about he said"he let his...
Read MoreGuidance on Son's Challenges
Posted on 2/16/2025
Our 4th child is 9 years old (we have 6 total), and was recently evaluated as having a few diagnosis issues via psychology office. One of them being "oppositional defiant disorder." We have been...
Read MoreMom Frustrated With 6YO Not Following Directives
Posted on 12/26/2024
Hello, I'm having issues with my 6 year old following directions and doing things the first time she's asked. I have made her a check list to help her organize her tasks which has helped. If I...
Read MoreGive Them an Inch...
Posted on 12/8/2024
We are in the process of resetting a slew of bad behaviors (sibling conflict, avoiding responsibility are currently the focus). I'm seeing an increase in defiance/disobedience, both directly and...
Read More4 BOYS ARE BOYS; THEREFORE, THEY ARE MESSY
Posted on 11/13/2024
I’m happy to report that the villain/victim drama has been resolved, with incidents only once a week. I hear whispers of “Please, let’s work this out so we don’t have to go sit for an hour.” I’m...
Read MoreLook Out Boss, Here Comes the Baby!
Posted on 9/6/2024
I have a 6-year-old daughter and a 3-year-old son. My daughter is the typical first child who is bossy, little mama and directs her brother frequently on what to do, not to do etc. She’s a...
Read MoreHow to Stop Being a Micromanager
Posted on 7/23/2024
Hi! So I’ve been perusing old questions and answers in your forum, and I’m coming to the distinct impression that I, myself, am a micromanager. Therefore, my first question is, it appears from...
Read MoreTroublemaking Siblings
Posted on 7/12/2024
Our two youngest children, when together, are troublemakers. They are 6 and 7, but when they are together they revert to large babies—don’t do their chores, lay around, giggle, tickling,...
Read MoreWhen Phases and a New Baby Coming Collide
Posted on 7/9/2024
Hi, we transitioned my son to a full bed because he began climbing out of his crib, and it was becoming unsafe. He has always been a great independent sleeper. However, now he requires either me...
Read MoreAudio
Parenting Through Proper Discipline
Posted on 6/15/2023
Firm, consistent discipline is foundational to proper parenting, but it can be one of the hardest challenges parents will face. In this session, you'll learn about: • The Rules of...
Read MoreParenting the Strong Willed Teen
Posted on 3/16/2023
This is an entertaining and informative talk on understanding and managing even the most petulant of today’s teenagers. The talk was recorded live before an audience in San Diego, CA, and is based...
Read MoreTopics Covered
- Academic Issues
- ADHD and other disorders
- Adoption/Foster Parent
- Aggression
- Allowances
- Alpha Speech
- Anxieties, Fears
- Arguments with Children
- Audio Files
- Bedtime/Sleep
- Bedwetting
- Behavior Modification
- Biblical Parenting
- Bill of Rights for Children
- Bonding With Baby/Child
- Boundaries
- Bullies/Bullying
- Character/Values (teaching)
- Chores/Responsibilities
- College
- Consequences/Punishment
- Daycare/Preschool
- Depression/Self-Harm
- Developmental Issues (e.g. late talking)
- Discipline Methods (e.g. time-out)
- Disobedience/Defiance
- Divorce/Custody
- Drugs (marijuana, cocaine, etc.)
- Education
- Electronics (Computers/Video Games/Television/Cell Phones)
- Elementary School
- Emotions
- Extracurricular Activities/Hobbies
- Fatherless Homes
- Fathers
- Food/Eating Problems
- Gender
- Gender Identity
- Gentle Parenting
- Grandparents/Grandchildren
- High School
- Homeschooling
- Homework
- John's Discipline Methods
- John's Speeches
- Juvenile Antisocial Behavior
- Learning Disabilities
- Lying
- Manners
- Marriage Issues
- Mealtime/Eating
- Mental Health
- Middle School
- Miscellaneous Discipline Problems
- Miscellaneous Editorial Columns
- Mothers
- Nouveau Parenting
- Only Children
- Pacifiers/Security Blankets/Thumbsucking
- Parent Leadership and Authority
- Play
- Podcasts
- Post Modern Psychological Parenting
- Preschool
- Psychiatric Diagnoses
- Psychiatric Drugs
- Psychology
- Rebellious Behavior
- Respect
- Rewards
- School Behavior Issues
- School Issues
- Seasons of Parenting
- Self-Esteem
- Seven Biggest Mistakes Parents Make
- Sexual Identity
- Sexual Issues
- Shyness
- Sibling Conflict
- Single Parents
- Social Issues (fighting/arguing with friends)
- Socialization/Social Skills
- Spanking
- Step-Families
- Strong-Willed Child
- Tantrums
- Teenage Issues
- Terrible Twos
- Therapy
- Toilet Training
- Videos
- Violence (Looting, Stealing)
- Webinars
- Woke Parenting
