How do I explain household work to a new helper in her first week in Singapore? 8 things, 3 fixed times (with template)

Yiru · Updated 23 October 2026

In the first week, do just four things:

• Explain only 8 things: start with the 8 things that happen every day, and add the rest in week two.
• Set 3 fixed times: fix 3 times in the day, and write the lunch break in too.
• Ask her to repeat it back: after explaining, ask her to say it again in her own words.
• Leave room to rest: nothing planned on her rest day, and no new instructions after 9 pm.

A new helper (maid) has a new home, new people and new appliances to get used to. Explain 30 things at once and she'll nod and say OK, but remember very few of them.

1. In the first week, explain only 8 things

Pick what happens every day, for example:

1. What time breakfast is, and what to make;
2. What time to start cooking dinner;
3. How to wash and hang the laundry;
4. Which areas to mop and wipe every day;
5. When to take out the rubbish;
6. What time the children are dropped off and picked up (if you have children);
7. What to watch out for with elderly family members each day (if you live with them);
8. What not to touch, and how to use the appliances.

Weekly jobs (changing bed sheets, cleaning windows) and occasional ones (a big clean) can come gradually from week two.

2. Set 3 fixed times each day

For example:

• 7:00 make breakfast;
• 12:00–14:00 lunch break;
• 17:30 start cooking dinner.

Once these times are fixed, she'll fit everything else around them. With the lunch break written in, she knows when she can rest, and you don't have to think about it every day.

3. After explaining, ask her to say it back in her own words

“OK” or “Yes” doesn't always mean she understood — often she just feels shy to ask again. Try this instead:

“Can you tell me how you'll do it later?”

Correct anything she gets wrong on the spot — much easier than fixing it after it's done. This isn't a test; it's the two of you checking you mean the same thing. In healthcare this is called teach-back, and the evidence for it is strong — see Helper says OK but gets it wrong?.

4. Leave room to rest

• Agree with her which day of the week is her rest day, and plan nothing for that day.
• Don't send new instructions after 9 pm; anything else can wait until the next morning.

If the days are packed, you'll both be tired, and that first-week impression lasts. For the rules on rest days, see Singapore helper rest day rules.

When you don't share a language

All four of these are much harder without a common language. Yiru can help a little:

• Type a sentence in your own language, or take a photo of a handwritten list, and the AI assistant Momo turns it into a house guide translated into her language. Burmese, Indonesian and Filipino all work.
• Her phone reminds her at the right time.
• If something isn't clear, she can tap “I have a question” and ask in her own language; you read it in yours.
• From 9 pm to 6 am, and on her rest day, nothing disturbs her.

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