My Household Duties (Reading, 7th grade).

This is my last year at school, and I work hard to pass my final exams successfully. As I am very busy, I can't help my parents much in keeping the house. But still I have some household duties.

Every day I do my room and my bed, wash up dishes, dust the furniture and usually go to the baker's after I have dinner. I buy some brown and white bread, biscuits and cakes there. The shop is not far from our house and it doesn't take me long to do everyday shopping.

Once a week I help my mother to do all other work about the house. We wash our linen, iron and mend it, clean the flat. We beat the dust out of the carpets, vacuum the floors and polish them. It's not difficult to keep the flat tidy if you do your rooms regularly. This is my usual round of duties.

But sometimes I have some other things to do. When my mother is ill or away from home, I do the cooking and the washing up, the buying of food and the planning of meals. I am not a good cook, but my vegetable soup is always tasty. I can also boil an egg or fry some meat. I also lay the table and clear away the dishes. If I'm too busy or can't do these things, all the duties are organized among other members of our family.

Sometimes I have to visit everyday services: hairdresser's, shoemaker's, dry-cleaner's, photographer's. At the hairdresser's I have my hair cut and waved. At the shoemaker's I have my shoes and boots repaired, at the photographer's I have my photos taken. Service is generally good, but in some cases it leaves much to be desired.

My brother has his own duties at home. He helps to fix and repair some things. For example, he repairs electrical appliances when they are out of order. He has already repaired our mother's electric iron, my desk lamp and his own shaver.

Last year I was at my grandparents. They are elderly people and need care and attention. During my stay there, I swept the floors and washed them, fed the chickens, collected the eggs and weeded the vegetable-beds. I don't know how to milk the cow but I helped to feed the other animals: lambs, sheep and pigs. I enjoyed this work very much.