Chore/reward Chart for 4 Year Old

One step ahead has a great one we have used for years. I bought it for them right around 4 years of age.

http://www.onestepahead.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId...

In my personal opinion, all the ideas below sound good, but I think at age four, she should still be learning to do what she is asked just because she is asked to do it and because she is part of the family. My kids clean up their toys each night (including their room) if it's not done already. My daughter puts her plate and cup by the sink when she's done eating and is expected to clean up after herself. I think I will personally wait until she's in Kindergarten to start something like this but I do like the one that Nikki G uses the best! I'm just not sure rewarding them with money (yet) is what I want to do. I want her to learn that she is part of our family and that means doing what we ask even if she doesn't get stickers or money. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for positive reinforcement, cause/effect, etc but sometimes kids should do things because they are part of a family and a family works together to get the house cleaned, in order, etc. Just my opinion!

My sons kindergarten class does a bee hive system. If a student has a great day and has no behavior issues during the day they are given a Green slip. If they are on ''think about it'' they are sent home with a reminder to try harder tomorrow. They do have time during the day to be put back on the hive though, if it is early enough in their day. If they were having a bad day and just couldnt get it figured out they are given a red slip. Which means they are off the hive and thats that for the day.

I thought it was a good system for the most part. I also didnt want to have the home rewards system be too much different then school. So we have a hive. Each kid has a chart. They get stickers for doing as they are asked, eating all their dinner( mainly dinner is what counts since he is at school for breakfast and lunch) and getting into bed without trouble.

We hand out stickers for the day before when they go to bed the next night. At the end of the month who ever has reached the sticker goal gets to go to the dollar store and pick out something. I was amazed at how well they all caught on with it. I have to initial the stickers though. My oldest one thought he could sneak add stickers the first month we tried it. So now if they have a sticker that has not been initialed, they loose the sticker for the next two days. We havent had any problems with it though since he did it the first time!!

Dave Ramsey does Financial Peace University Jr., and in that program, he recommends a commission chart. He starts them as young as age 3. I didn't think it was age appropriate for my four-year-old but I tried it anyway, and she LOVES it!!! This is what I do:

I have a chore chart with a list of age appropriate chores. (i.e.: pick up toys, empty dishwasher, help set the table, pick up DVDs, take dirty clothes to laundry, etc.) Each chore has a dollar amt. beside it (each chore is worth from 20 cents to one dollar, depending). She also has 'extra' chores and 'bonus' chores (i.e., act of kindness, keeping room clean for a whole week, etc.) that are worth more money.

Since she is 4, she gets paid immediately when she does a chore, and she gets a check mark on her chore chart. She has three jars labeled spending, saving, and giving. She loves when she gets paid to decide which jar to put her money in. I couldn't believe how well she responded to this! She is always excited to help out and earn money! Now, when the ice cream truck comes along, she has her own money to spend.

My seven-year-old loves it too!

I have never used this system, and I think it's pricey at 30 bucks, but it also seems REALLY good, heard about it in a homeschool group I frequent. accountablekids.com There are a TON of free online printables you can find as well if you just google chore charts.

My grandchildren each have a marble jar. There is a chart showing various chores/behavior that is rewarded, and each chore/behavior gets a set amount of marbles. When the jar is full, they get to pick their reward (eating out at a restaurant of their choice, a specific toy their want ($20 maximum), etc.). When they misbehave, marbles are removed from their jar (they have to remove the marble(s) themselves). It works wonderfully for their family.

I just got a magnetic chore chart for my 3.5 year old son. I know kids are supposed to learn to do what they're asked just for "goodness sake" but I've found that my son needs bribes or threats to get him moving. I'm pretty happy with it so far.

Melissa & Doug makes one similar, but I'm not sure what brand ours is. It has goals or responsibilities to choose from, a row for each day of the week, and a row at the end to mark which ones were achieved or done well. Right now we have simple goals like brushing teeth, putting away toys, getting dressed, helping out, and no hitting. There are ones for older kids like finishing homework and feeding pets.

We go over the chart each night before bed and he is very pleased to put the magnets on the things he did that day. He'll admit which things he didn't do, so he doesn't throw a fit if he doesn't get a magnet for everything - that's what surprised me the most!

At the end of the week we'll decide which things he did well enough, and he can earn up to $3 (play money) if he does well. The last few weeks he's only gotten $2, and again I was surprised that he understood why & didn't throw a fit over it.

Then we give him the option of spending it or saving it, and explained that if he saved his money, he could buy a great big toy later on. He decided to spend half and save half, so my husband takes him to the store and he gets to pick something for $1 or less. This week he once again surprised us by using his allowance to buy a pink ball for his baby sister!

I have to back up what Nikki G says about Dave Ramsey - my 4 year old LOVES to earn (it's an incentive) and gets to spend her earnings how she wants (she can spend it right away on something small or save up for a Barbie or whatever). She is much more willing to help out even with little stuff knowing she is part of "the home team" and that she will be rewarded at the end of the week.

We have the Melissa & Doug resonsibility chart. I like it and so do my kids.