Yes, about two years ago we tried out the chore chart. Lexi was NOT interested in earning stickers and eventually, Emma wasn’t either. And I got tired of pestering. But Emma has been begging for me to put one together lately. Both girls really are understanding money and with their birthdays and Christmas hanging around, they are all about earning some extra money. I’m interested in them actually earning the money instead of forking over money for a toy out of guilt so I think this is win-win so far. We started last Thursday and I did a shortened list until Saturday when I paid them.
I don’t know if there’s really a wrong way to do a chore chart. I’ve seen them done so many different ways with different rules and I’ve just come to the conclusion I just need to do what works for us. So I put stuff on there they actually wanted to do. Emma loves getting the mail. Lexi loves to wash the floor. Emma has been feeding Mattie for months unofficially. I don’t think this needs to be a form of punishment. Why not enjoy our work? So here were the chores for last week:
Lexi (6)
- Unload dishwasher
- Clean floors (she takes a wet washcloth and cleans the hardwoods)
- Make bed
- Spray house (oust)
- Put out napkins and drinks for dinner
- Put clothes in dryer
- Clean the fridge (we clean out old stuff and wash down the shelves)
Emma (8 this week)
- Feed Mattie twice a day
- Get mail
- Make bed
- Put out silverware and plates for dinner
- Clean bathroom counter and mirror
- Take out trash
- Vacuum
- Dust
So yes, I don’t know why but Lexi loves to clean the fridge and Emma loves to take out the trash. It doesn’t need done every day but I can’t tell you how much I’m loving it!
I didn’t reinvent the wheel and make anything crafty. We just printed a free chore chart per week from here. I pay .25 per check mark EVERY DAY. It’s really hard for Lexi to wait a whole week for her payment so when I say come do this, you’ll get another .25 on Saturday, she’s like, I don’t care. Paying daily seems to make it more rewarding somehow.
And I know if they do every single thing every single day, that’s a lot of money. But I’m not making them do every single thing and we haven’t had one day where they’ve done everything. If they want the money, they are welcome to do it. There are certain things like feeding Mattie or helping at dinner that are not up for grabs but I’m not going to pester about vacuuming every single day.
We are only five days in but so far so good!
My issue with chore charts has always been that I don’t like keeping track of if the chores were done. I’ve never paid for chores, but that’s just how we do it in our house. I don’t like having to keep up with it all or not being consistent. They each have their list a laminated list so they can use a dry erase marker to check stuff off. They have until the end of the day to get it done, if they don’t then they take over extra chores the next day.
Isn’t it fun to watch them do chores they enjoy? ;o) My daughter LOVES to clean the kitchen. She takes forever, but she gets it done and doesn’t complain.
The extra chores is a great idea…that’s how life works right? You don’t keep up and you have a bigger mess!
I had a similar system growing up. I received $0.25 to $5.00 for doing chores around the house. For the more time consuming ones I made more money (like mowing the grass). My parents put that system in place when I was in high school. Let’s just say that I ended up with alot of money after it was all said and done. Even in high school I liked seeing how many “X”‘s I had on my calendar because I could see how much money I was going to receive on my next pay day.
Awesome! Knowing how responsible/respectful of money you are (hello, Mrs. Accountant) it makes me feel good we are doing something similar. I like your idea of adding bigger ones and paying more!
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