I started both my boys and both my girls helping out when they were young, starting with their toys, setting the table for meals, dishes duty, even a day in the yard with mowing and vegie patches! It was all going fine till they got to the dreaded teen years, then kapuff! It all went out the door! lol

My boys are tidier in their room and they hardly made a mess but the girls, omg! every time they change their clothes(which seems to be every hour or so) they just toss things all over the room. Looks like a tornato has been through it. I got sick of asking them to clean their room and now I just close the door and say "I choose peace over this!"  One thing does work though, bribery lol. Then the boys ask for a lift or money I give it to them but refuse the girls, when they ask why? I say the boys have done their chores and get privledges and when you girls do your chores you will get the same. Some days it works other days it doesn't but I give them the choice and the consequences are theirs.

The oldest is pretty good about keeping up her room (except for the regularly unmade bed) the youngest wants to get some new decorations and such, but we told her we don't want to put any new stuff in her room if she can't keep track of what she's got already, so if she can keep her room clean and tidy for a month, we will take her to pick out some new decorations. It may be temporary but it's a month of a clean room!

My oldest is a bit of a neat freak, his two younger sister, not quite so much. I had mine start helping around the house when they were quite young. I say if they are old enough to take the toy out of the box, then they are also old enough to put it back. Everyone is assigned a chore to do, we have the chart to make sure that everyone knows what's suppose to be done and who is suppose to do it. Each child is responsible for making up their bed in the morning and helping to keep the common areas clean. Living room, and such. We also made it seem like a game, something that they would want to do. So that helped. But if all else fails, you can always resort to keeping their bedroom doors closed.

Mushirah