Do you use kid-friendly plates for the whole family, or grown-up ones too?

[reezley]

I hope I'm asking this in the right place! My kids are 5 and 7 now, and I'm trying to think how they could help more with household chores.  I would love to have them help with dishes somehow, like setting the table, unloading dishwasher, but our dishes are heavy, breakable ceramic-type ones (that we registered for when we got married).  Dishes really pile up each day so quickly and it would be so great to have the kids able to help.

When I was a kid, we had a full set of Corelle - you know, the thin, light, break-resistant ones, which the whole family used.  And loading/unloading dishes was a chore my sisters and I shared.  I have a few Corelle now that I've collected in bits and pieces that only the kids use, but dh and I still use the regular dishes, so most of the dishes in the dishwasher I wouldn't want the kids handling - they're heavy even for me! 

But - DH is against getting kid-friendly ones for everyone, he just likes things nicer for himself generally, not kid-like, I guess... 

So I'm trying to see if this is something a lot of people do - or do a lot of grownups insist on grownup dishes?   ;) 

Edited by reezley - 3/1/12 at 9:11am

[34me]

We had Pfaltzgraff, kind of like these http://www.pfaltzgraff.com/Blue/Green/Beige-Dinnerware-Set%2C-32-Piece%2C-Service-for-8/K85072504,default,pd.html?cgid=dinnerware_sets from the time we were married until we had a fire almost 5 years ago.  (16 years).  We replaced them with Fiesta.  We've never had an issue with the kids and either set.  They have always done the dishwasher and set the table.

[Masel]

Does your set have salad plates? My 6 year old uses these for meals. 

[reezley]

Originally Posted by Masel 

Does your set have salad plates? My 6 year old uses these for meals. 

Yes, it has salad plates, but the only point of buying the set of lighter dishes would be so the boys could unload the dishwasher on their own, to help out.  That would involve the big plates, and bowls, etc.  Thanks though.   :)   The Corelle stuff that I bought them was as a step up from the plastic divider plates that they used exclusively as toddlers. Though actually I still have them in rotation too...  

[elsie]

Well we have grown dishes we all use and have always used, but our dishes aren't particularly heavy (just regular weight, not light) so I'm not sure how much help I can give. I would just have them get use to whatever heavy dishes you have, you'd be surprised what kids can manage and at their age, they should be able to handle it.

[reezley]

*Maybe* I should just let them try to handle the regular dishes. My 7 year old son is not known for his slow, careful movements.......  so I'm afraid we'll end up with lots of plates with chipped edges.  I guess I could give it a try though and see what happens.....

[Imakcerka]

All we have left is kids dishes.  The kids broke all the adult dishes.

[sere234]

I'd buy a new set of dishes next time I found some on clearance! And either get rid of or store the older set. Way too complicated for me to have dishes kids can't wash or unload!

[chel]

We use the Corelle as our regular dishes. But I like the plastic ikea stuff for everyone to limit the portion size. So everyone uses both sets.
With that said, dd2 has broken several Corelle as she likes to be helpful and puts/toss dishes into the sink.

I would either get lighter dishes or be willing to accept broken/chipped dishes