Outdoor chores for 12-year-olds
Outdoors jobs at 12: 5 most children do alone and 1 to start with you, with the time, how often and points for each.
Outdoor chores at 12
| Job | Stage | Time | How often | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bring in the mail | On their own | 2 min | Daily | 5 |
| Pull weeds | On their own | 20 min | Weekly | 15 |
| Rake leaves | On their own | 30 min | Seasonal | 15 |
| Wash the car | On their own | 30 min | Monthly | 15 |
| Shovel snow | On their own | 30 min | Seasonal | 15 |
| Mow the lawn | With you | 45 min | Weekly | 20 |
On their own means most children this age manage it alone; With you means they start it with a grown-up alongside. Points are on a 5-for-a-small-job scale.
Start together at 12
- Mow the lawn (alone from about 14)
Most 12-year-olds can do alone
- Bring in the mail
- Pull weeds
- Rake leaves
- Wash the car
- Shovel snow
⚠️ Safety notes for these jobs: Pull weeds: Gloves on, and show them any plants in your garden that sting or are poisonous. Wash the car: Only with the car parked, engine off and keys away from the car. Shovel snow: Push rather than lift heavy snow, take breaks, wear warm layers and stay well clear of the road and snowplows. Mow the lawn: Children's safety guidance commonly says at least 12 for a walk-behind mower and 16 for a ride-on. Closed shoes, eye protection, nobody else in the yard, and never pull a mower backwards.
A day of jobs at 12
- Daily jobs
- 3 or 4
- Weekly jobs
- 2
- Time
- 20 to 30 minutes a day
What these jobs teach
- a small daily responsibility
- sorting by name
- telling plants apart
- patience
- time outdoors
- physical effort
- seeing a big result
- working as a team
In TaskFamily these become jobs on your 12-year-old's own screen, with points, repeat days and the Trust Ladder to move each job from "check every time" to spot checks.
Free for one household. Premium is $5.99 a month or $49 a year for the whole family, never per child.
Keep reading
Ages and times are typical, not rules: children develop at different speeds, and you know yours best. The chore library is TaskFamily's own. The guide text is drafted with AI from these numbers and checked automatically before it is published.