| Checks for Chores | ||
ArticlesNanny TaxSummer SolutionsTragic LossExercise: A Family MatterChecks for ChoresBack to | If your kids are anything like mine, getting them to help around the house is sometimes more trouble than it is worth. I marvel at the way my four-year-old has boundless energy when pulling out every Barbie accessory she owns, but shes "too tired" to put even one item away. Then theres our seven-year-old, who gets so focused on his Gameboy he forgets to eat, but is endlessly distracted when asked to make his bed. Sick and tired of yelling, threatening and punishing, I knew there had to be a better way. Well, Ive found a solution that works for our family. We call it The Check System and we love it. It is visual, goal oriented and, best of all, it works. The idea is simple. Use a whiteboard to list each name and chore category. Each chore equals one check, and four checks equal a dollar. Bigger chores are worth more checks. Checks are gained for accomplishing tasks or lost for misbehavior. Weve categorized chores by each room. Washing the dishes, mopping the floor or taking out the trash all fall under "Kitchen". We also added categories for homework and attitude. Personalize your board to work for your family. My favorite category is "the Blitz". When youve got kids you are constantly picking things up. Now this mundane chore has become fun. We announce a blitz is coming up, set the timer for five minutes, assign each person an area or team up with smaller children, and ready, set, go. The kids see it as a contest and are suddenly putting things away at lightening speed. Five minutes later, the house is straightened and everyone gets a check. Goal setting is an important part of making the Check System work. The kids tell us what their saving their checks towards. We list the cost of the item and how many checks it takes to earn that item. Once a week we total the checks and cash out. This helps make the value of the checks clearer, especially to smaller children, to whom money is still a pretty abstract concept. Another benefit of the Check System is as a consequence for misbehavior. One day last week, we discovered a whole bag of candy wrappers hidden upstairs. Apparently, our little angels pilfered a bag of chocolates from the kitchen and proceeded to have a candy party. Once discovered, they had to clean up their mess (no check for this chore) and then decide on the consequence; no computer time for one day or the loss of two checks. They opted for losing computer time. Now just the threat of a lost check gets their cooperation. Not only has the Check System been effective in getting out kids to do their chores, it has also been a good lesson in economics. Now, when they see something they want, they save their checks for it. They are learning to make financial decisions, like "If I use my checks to buy that Pokemon, I wont have enough to buy the Hot Wheel tracks Ive been saving for." Living within your means is a valuable lesson to learn at any age.
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The Check System is working well for our family. Try this or a variation of it for your family. For more ideas, check out the following sources: - a great source for tips on parentingParentsPlace.com- offers helpful articles and chats about all aspects of parenting Kidsense Online.com great source for information on teaching your child about money Software-These shareware items can be downloaded free from the following sites.http://enternet.softseek.com/ SWAT (The Shareware Authors Toolkit) helps automate many of the routine chores of shareware authors. SoftSeek.com- Chores and Rewards provides a system to manage chores, rewards, and penalties, while teaching your children responsibility and accountibility BooksMoney Doesn't Grow on Trees : A Parent's Guide to Raising Financially Responsible Children Parenting with Love and Logic: Teaching Children Responsibility Chores Without Wars
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