Hey all, its been a while since ive needed help. i have been trying to get together a chore chart for my 2 boys(ages 4 and 6). im needing help on how to put one together and how big one should be. if u have ne ideas i would really aprreciate it. thanks, R.
Two boys huh? I would definitely add cleaning the area around the toilet they use, maybe that would help keep the "fountains" in the toilet. LOL
I went to Mardel's and they had one made up that was perfect for us. It is broke uo into 4 sections: My room (put my things away,put dirty clothes up, made my bed, a blank one), My School (ready for school on time, had school stuff ready, did homework, a blank one), My Family (cleaned up after snack/meal,picked up my things around the house, helped a family member, a blank one), and Myself (brushed my teeth,brushed my hair, took a bath/shower, a blank one). These charts came in an 8 1/2x11 tablet form where you can tear one sheet (one week of chores) off at a time. It also came w/ stickers for the kids to put on the chart when they accomplished a chore. My kids really loved this chart b/c it is bright colored and the stickers are cute funny faces. At the bottom of the chart there is a place to write in what reward or special privilege that the child would like to earn that week or their allowance.
A couple of things we have added since they got a little older (8,6,4) is the dishwasher. They feed and water their animals. Before I go to bed at night I make sure all the dishes are in the dishwasher and then I run it. As soon as they get up in the morning, they come and empty it. They each have their specific section. My oldest does the bottom section (plates, bowls & big stuff), my middle does the top (cups & little stuff), and my youngest does the utensils. They also help me with laundry. I start the washer, they put the clothes in the dryer, and when they are dry, they pull them out for me. I sort them and then they are in charge of putting away their stuff. I have to help them every once in awile (especially my 4 year old), but for the most part, they do all of this themselves.
By having them help w/ the dishes and laundry really helped me out. I actually get to sit down every once in awile and rest now. Hope this helps!!
I would do little things like brushing teeth, brushing hair, taking vitamins and picking up toys as chores at first. I use a box system and a money system for my kids. When they complete a task without having to go back and do something else to make it right or do something without being asked I give them each a "box" on their houses(the houses were drawn and colored on pieces of construction paper). The money comes in on Saturday. If they have done all their chores they each get a set amount of money. Yours are probably too young for money systems yet. Great idea to start them out so young. They get to cash in their boxes for outings that they normally wouldn't get to do. Or if we are going somewhere that they would want to spend money I let them cash in their boxes for real money. They have to save part and can spend part of it. There is a website called www.chartjungle.com that really helped me out!!! The six year old can help sweep or mop or laudry. My six year old little girl does that kind of stuff.
We have tried so many different things and we normally only do them for a couple weeks and then just....stop. Well I have finally found something that is working great for our family, maybe it could work for yours as well. I got a white board and wrote the days of the week across the top and the chores along the side. Then I decided how much each chore would cost with the range of how much I want to give her each week, my daughter is 6, I came up with 10 cents per chore. I think for the chore part you will have to decide on what is important to you and appropriate within your household. For us she has 5 chores per day, 1. clean room 2. clean living room(which is mostly toys from my one year old) 3. Feed and water the cats 4. feed the fish 5. brush teeth 2x a day(this was to get her in the habit of brushing 2x a day instead of one) and then we have an extra section for the extra chores she might do for that day. Sometimes she will vacuum or help sweep the kitchen floor or help with laundry, things like that and I just put that in the extra for the day. My neighbor who has two children that has chores has a small white board for each child and she also said that this is the only thing that has stayed for them as well. I hope you find what works for you and your kids! Take care and God bless!
http://www.workingmom.com/age-guidelines.htm - This page includes an age-appropriate list of a few things kids can do around the house. http://www.printablechecklists.com/checklist11.shtml - This site offers age-appropriate chores in the form of a printable checklist.
Good luck. I have really good kids and we've tried all sorts of chore lists/reward systems, but nothing would work for more than a couple of months. My 12 year old has *finally* reached the age that she knows she has to earn privileges like computer/TV time by getting the few things done that are expected of her. What I've learned through trial and error is chores aren't worth fighting over, don't make the system too complicated, and if you stay on them - eventually they will remember what they need to do.
Check out www.housefairy.org for some great ideas. Also, www.FlyLady.net has a section especially for kids.
Blessings,
T. Walker
www.MomRN.com
Hi R.,
Hobby Lobby carries pre-made charts that work great...and are easy to understand by the child.
Good luck.
W. Q
here's the chores my boys have
http://housekeeping.about.com/od/chorechart1/a/ageapprcho...
I don't have advice - but THANKS for asking the question! This is something I've been wondering about for my 4 year old and the advice has already helped so much!
