Getting Kids to Clean is a Chore

Many kids today rarely lift a dust rag. Their rooms often look like a tornado hit them, with unmade beds and clothes scattered everywhere.

We may be raising a nation of slobs if something isn’t done about it, say two leading cleaning experts. They are advising parents to pick up their brooms and turn them over to their children. “Anybody old enough to mess up is old enough to clean up,” says Don Aslett, known as the King of Clean and the author of 40 books. “ Parents are cleaning up after kids, and I think it’s sad. They are reinforcing bad behavior.”

Kids today seem to be doing a lot less housework and chores. Children have less time because they are busy with sports, clubs, after-school activities, jobs and homework, says Sampson Lee Blair, associate professor of sociology.

Plus, parents today consider their kids “emotional assets” to love and take care of rather than the “economic assets” they were years ago when they were essential for running the family farm, Blair says. Some parents don’t want to be strict about making their kids do chores, he adds. But they aren’t doing their kids any favors by letting them off the hook, says Aronson, who writes a cleaning column for the San Francisco Chronicle.

Parents who want their kids to help around the house should start giving them chores early and be consistent in making sure the jobs are done, experts say.

Aronson began working on this when her kids were toddlers. From the time her youngest could walk, she had him picking up his dirty clothes and putting them in the hamper.

When her oldest son was 10, he stomped out of his room one day and told her that she needed to do the laundry because he didn’t have any clean uniforms for school. That was the day she taught him to do his own wash.

And chores like washing windows and mowing the lawn are something the family can do together to make their home nicer.

(By Nanci Hellmich USA TODAY)

13. Work in pairs. You are busy with housework. Restore the dialogues. Use the word combinations below.

1) A: Hello, come in. Don’t mind the mess. I’m just …….

B: Oh, what a pity you are busy.

A: Don’t worry. It never takes me much time …….

2) A: Let me…..

B: ……, you may ……..

A: Don’t you want to ……..? Do you mind if I open the window?

B: Oh, no. I don’t mind it a bit.

3) A:Wait a moment. I have to wash up …...

B: Somebody else can do it, I think.

A: Certainly, everybody can, but today it’s ….. to do it.

4) A: ……….? Is it the fridge again?

B: No It’s not the fridge. …….

A: Oh? Well, what’s wrong with it?

B: Well, I think …….with the temperature control. Everything I try to cook

gets burnt.

A: Really? OK, I’ll get someone to look at it right away.

What can I do for you? …water the flowers It’s oven this time. …help you …my turn …the dishes …

… something’s wrong … air the room …doing the room … scrubbing brush …to tidy up the room If you don’t mind…

Some students live in the hostels and some rent rooms or flats with their group-mates. Look up and say which of these viewpoints are expressed in the text.

■a. Living with somebody in one flat has both benefits and drawbacks.

b. Sharing a flat doesn’t have any advantages.

c. If you share a flat with somebody you are a lucky person.

2) a. Sharing a flat with some people is more expensive than living on your

own.

b. You pay less if you live in one flat with somebody.

c. If you share a flat with somebody you pay as much as if you lived by

yourself.

7. a. When you live with somebody you share all the housework.

b. Sharing a flat with somebody means that you have to do twice as much

housework as living alone.

c. If you live in one flat with somebody you don’t have any household

chores.

8. a. Living apart from your parents is sometimes dangerous for your health.

b. When you live far from your parents you feel bored and depressed.

c. It’s both interesting and pleasant to live apart from your parents for the

first time.

9. a. An ideal thing is to have your own flat.

b. To live with your parents is the best way.

c. Best of all is to live with people of your own age.

Sharing a flat certainly has some advantages. To begin with, it should be cheaper, and if you are sharing with people that you get on well with, it is nice to have some company at home rather than being all on your own. Also the household chores are shared, and that is very important. Particularly when you are younger, and you are living apart from your parents for the first time, it can be very enjoyable to live with people of your own age, whose interests and lifestyle you share.

However, sharing a flat does have some distinct disadvantages, and the main one is that the flat is not your own. So you cannot do what you want in it. What happens if you want to go to bed but your flatmate wants to play music? To a certain extent you have to be unselfish. What is more, there can be little privacy.

I would say that as you get older, it is probably better to live on your own. Having had my own flat for a few years, I would not like to have to share again.

Renting a Flat

A young engineer is talking about how he had to rent a house. Read this story and put each of the following words or phrases in its correct position. Talk about your experience in renting a flat.

deposit fee flat advertisements self-contained landlord rent block references accommodation agency

a) The first thing I had to do in London was to find somewhere to live, if possible a small, one-bedroomed (a)________. I didn’t want to share a kitchen or toilet; I wanted to be independent in my own (b)________ place. I decided I could pay a (c)________ of ₤50 a week. I couldn’t find what

I wanted in the newspaper (d)________ so I went to an (e)________. They offered me a nice place.

It was in a modern (f)________ on the third floor. I had to pay the agency a (g)________, and

the (h)________ wanted a big (i)________ and (j)________ from my employer and bank manager.

16. Work in pairs. You are looking for a new flat to rent. Restore the dialogues. Use the word combinations and sentences from the box given bellow.

1) A: Good morning! May I help you?

B: ……..

A: And what kind of place are you looking for?

B: Well, we have two young children, so we’d like a place that’s ……

A: I see. Well, we have a very nice three-bedroom house that is located in a nice area.

2) A: Then go and see my room. There are all necessary pieces of furniture in it. The room overlooks the park.

B: Your room is really nice and comfortable. But what about bed linen and would you allow to use the refrigerator?

A: Yes…..

B: It isn’t bad indeed. When can we move in?

A: . …..The room is ready.

3) A: I was told that you have an apartment to let.

B: Yes, I have ….

A: How many bedrooms are there?

B: …..

A:How much is the rent? What are your terms?

B:89 dollars a week,……

A:What aboutother services?

B:They are…..

A:Do you think I could have a look at the apartment, please?

B:Yes, sure, but….

A:Well, I’d like to see the kitchen then, only to make sure, that it is equipped to cook.

B:This way, please. As you see, it has …

A:And where is a bathroom?

B:Here it is………. You can put a washing machine here, there is enough room for it.

Any time you like. …a spare apartment for rent … including laundry I hope so. I’m looking for a place to rent. …to be paid monthly …it is a mess now, I am afraid A bath-tub and a shower. That is included in the rent which is quite reasonable. …fairly big and pretty quiet Two bedrooms entirely furnished. … up-to-date equipment, a new sink and a gas stove

A) When people are asked what kind of housing they need or want, the question evokes a variety of answers: “four bedrooms”; “lots of storage space”; “close to my work”; “low rent”; “a quiet neighbourhood”; “a big yard”; “a scenic view”; and so on.

Continue this list.

b) Work in groups. Read the information about where some people would like to live. Say which variant suits you most of all. Why?

Paul: “Is it big enough?” is perhaps the first question a family asks when it looks at a new house or apartment. I want, for example, a bedroom for me and my wife, a separate bedroom for my children , large closets, a kitchen with a good-sized eating area, a large living room, a library, a patio, a two-car garage, and so on. I would like to have as much space as I can afford.

Mary: There is a separate dining room in my flat now. But I think a dining area adjoining the living room and kitchen would be better for my family. It would be the informal center of family life.

David: In my view, modern homes should have many appliances, a system of hot and cold running water, a central heating system suitable to the climate, an automatic washer and dryer in the laundry room, central air conditioning, a dishwasher.

Alex: It seems to me that kitchen and bathroom floors should be covered with linoleum or tile. The floors of other rooms should be hardwood or covered with permanent carpeting.

Susan: I’m not willing to live in an experimental dwelling. A house should look like a house. I’d like to live in a new modern house. Because old houses may have roofs that sag or leak, cracked foundations and walls, floors that are not level, and doors that do not fit their frames. Work done by a previous occupant—do-it-yourself wiring or plumbing, for example—may be unattractive or even dangerous. Unfortunately, some of these defects may be discovered only after occupancy.

Nick: Well, I would say, that a vital feature of any dwelling is its accessibility to your place of work and to stores, schools, homes of friends and relatives, and other frequently visited places. I’d like to live less than an hour's commuting time from my job.

c) Interview your group-mates. Find out what modern conveniences they would like to have in their houses or flats. Let them express their opinions using the following phrases:

I’d rather… I wish... I would prefer... It would be better... I would like… I’d better... I wouldn’t mind...

A) Match the types of dwellings with the correct pictures. Where do you think each type of dwelling can be found? Which is the most economical and which is the most expensive to keep?

skyscraperblock of flats semi-detached house terraced house

cottage mansion detached house

A B C