At the beginning of the school year, Derrick and I decided that we wanted to encourage our kids to do their chores by offering incentives. We thought it would be a great way to teach responsibility and give the kids a little spending money. Plus, it would help put some structure to our random requests for help.
But I was hesitant to pay them for chores. I feared it would create a culture of demand, where the kids would only do a chore when they thought they would get paid. In our house, there are some jobs that you do just because you are a member of the family.
So I let the ideas simmer in my head for two months. Every week the kids would ask when we were going to get started. And every week my answer was, "Soon."
Finally, when the first set of report cards came home, I was ready to unveil our new system.
Derrick and I first set the amounts we wanted to give to each boy...$1 for our first grader and $2 for the third grader.
Next, I made a list of chores that we wanted the boys to do on a daily basis. Some of the chores are really quick and others take a bit more time, but they are all easy. Feeding the dog is one of the favorite chores.
We put stars in the squares to indicate that is a required chore for that day. That just helps give them direction and focus. Plus, it keeps them from fighting over the desired chores.
There are spaces at the bottom to add other chores for the week. For instance, you can see above that Andrew helped empty the dishwasher on Thursday. He received a check. We also can add outdoor chores, like taking the plants inside before the first freeze.
At the end of the week, we count the checks. Our first grader needs 24 checks to earn his full dollar. The third grader will earn a dollar with 24 checks or $2 with 36 checks. His extra chores tend to be a bit harder to earn the extra dollar.
Oh, and the one catch is that they do not receive any money until after Sunday Clean Up. It makes me happy to start the week with a straight house.
We laminated the charts and posted them in the kitchen. One big rule is that I'm the only one who is allowed to make check marks.
(Amanda is still on the stoplight chart. Hers are tied to "special treats" at the end of the day. If she moves to yellow, she only gets one special treat. At red, she does not get any. After that, she is on "ticket" which means some bigger consequence. Every day, she starts on green. I'm a fan of "new day, new beginnings.")
After four months with this system, I'd say it is working great! The best part is getting positive responses when I ask the boys to help. The other night, we were at a Cub Scout pack meeting. The parents were asked to meet separately, but Amanda wanted to stay with the boys for the kid-friendly program. I asked Scott to watch her while I was gone. At first, he gave me a big groan and "no." Then, when I told him he would get a check, his attitude immediately changed. I love that we have found something that works for our family and the way we operate.
