For example, as children begin to follow their parents around the house, parents can ask them to help carry something, water a plant, or empty a wastebasket. Children gain a sense of autonomy when they can act on their own initiative to do helpful tasks. As young children become more competent, they become increasingly capable of completing the responsibility or chore on their own. As children grow, it is the responsibility of the parents to increase the level of difficulty of children s routinely assigned chores. This process helps the child to feel increasingly competent.
Routines can help foster good behavior, adequate performance, and a sense of identity.
The key is for the parents to be consistent in their expectations, which then sets the stage for adolescence. As the young child grows into adolescence, the parents can increase the level of responsibility expected. Parents are likely to feel more certain that the child is capable, and the focus of their interactions changes from responsibility to accountability. As parents create a higher level of expectation in an established routine, they are able to remind their child of how far he has come. This process helps to externally validate the growing child s sense of competence.