So.....chores around here are hard to get done. I can do them....I usually do. I just have a problem of letting go...letting some chore be done differently than me...or not done but 80%. However, I also know that my kids need to learn these things in order to be a responsible person later in life.
However.....I have a tough time getting the kids to do them, to want to do them, to have them get done even a lil bit. So I've been looking at chore charts and reward systems that the bloggers have done. I came up with something that I think our kids can get into and want to do them.
Today was the first day of implementation and they are already vying for getting them done and upset when one chore couldn't be done (I need furniture polish, thus bringing on the tears of not being able to dust...today...when it's a weekly chore....but we will get into that coming up)
First, I came up with rules for the house. Although the boys know them, they were excited when I had them written up so perrtttyy :) Then, I also wanted to make a list of what they should do. That way it was positive as well.
So our rules are: 1) No yelling (the kids like to yell at each other); 2) No name calling (they like to call each other names and it drives me insane); 3) No hitting (they are boys, but they sometimes take it to the extreme); 4) No bothering..... each other (they like to aggravate each other to the max...on purpose); 5) No jumping on the furniture (Trev likes to bounce between the two couches and jump on them); 6) No running inside (they like to chase each other throughout the house). I think I may have to add another rule that somehow I forgot. They like to take each other's stuff without asking (mine as well), so we may be adding an addendum.
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| Rules |
Then for the way they should act. 1) Listen 1st time (so tired of repeating myself); 2) Help (one another if they need it); 3) Share (don't be jerking items out of each other's hands just because you want it now); 4) Compliment (tell each other they are awesome).
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| To do list |
So then I came up with chores that need to be done around here and how often they needed to be done. We have 6 daily chore and 6 weekly chores. Trev and Mark also have an additional daily and weekly one. So we have for the daily: put shoes on rack, put dishes in the dishwasher, put dishes up that are in the dishwasher, clean the living room (two of them share this chore), pick clothes up (if they are laying around). Weekly chores: vacuum, clean the bathroom, clean the yard (two of them share this chore), dust, wash clothes. Trev and Mark have static chores of homework (daily) and cleaning their room (weekly).
I put these on popsicle sticks, along with point values and decorations :)
The daily chores will be drawn the night before. After school, they'll already know what they need to jump on after school.
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| The chore sticks with chores and point values. |
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| Other side of chore sticks. That way they can't see what the chore is...they just draw :) |
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| Chore stick holder I decorated |
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| Looking in the Chore Stick holder with the sticks in |
Next....how are the points going to work? Well....if they do the chore, they get the points. Daily points have 1 point value. Weekly points are bigger. Cleaning bathroom is a lil dirty, so it's worth the most at 5 points. Dusting and vacuuming is 4 points. Washing clothes and cleaning the yard is worth 3 points. Cleaning their room is worth 2 points.
Sounds easy right? Well, we made it more interesting. If they don't do the chore, it goes to negative points. So for the person who doesn't put the shoes on the rack (1 point), they lose the point...as in it is subtracted from their total. Since two ppl are to clean the yard, they both have to help. If only one person does it, that person gets both people's points...in addition, the person who didn't help, loses those points. If Trev and Mark are assigned it, and only Mark does it, Mark receives 6 points and Trev loses 3.
So we made a list to show what is expected. If they happen to not have a chore to actually do, as long as they check on it, they will get half of the points (because it's not their fault that it wasn't available). Like, if there are no dishes to put into the dishwasher, as long as they check that there isn't, they will get .5 of a point.
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| Expectation of the chores |
Wondering about the "Get 'caught'" one? I have a jar with a label. It says "Caught ya being good!" with a fish and hook. Then we have slips of paper that L or I will fill out. (I got this idea from How Does She?. I lovvveee this website ) If we catch the kids doing something without being asked or doing something nice, we will fill out the paper and stick it in the jar. At the end of the week, we will tally up the slips from each kid and add it into their total. (2 points per "catch")
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| "Caught ya" jar |
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| Slips of paper for the jar |
I have warned them that they can't do things expecting to get a "caught" paper. They also can't come up to us and say "I did 'such and such'....do I get a paper?" This has been said over and over again.....hope they remember :)
So what does all this add into? Why....rewards of course :) We wanted it to be where they could get something almost every week (if everything is done that they are assigned), yet also ones where they have to save up. We have: gum, candy (50 pts); Drawer pull (I have a drawer with items that they can grab), movie night (picking a movie from Netflix along with popcorn/candy) (70 pts); outing (with mom or dad...they get to pick, we pick were we go....with the kids telling what they might like to do) (100 pts); book (110 pts); Toy less than $20 (although I know I wrote it wrong on the sign...lol) (130 pts). Then we have Wii and computer time. For the Wii....30 mins is 180 pts and an hour is 340 pts. (I know that isn't doubling it....I wanted to reduce it a lil bit to reward them as well). Computer is....30 mins for 190 pts and an hour is 360 pts.
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| Reward poster |
So here is what our wall looks like now :) Full of chores and rewards :)
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| Our wall of chores |
