How Can I Motivate My Kids to Do Their Chores?

We never paid or reward for chores. We just said today we need to make sure all of the toys on the floor are put back where they belong.

In 5 minutes, put all of your books back on the shelf.

Being part of a family means there are things we each just have to do. They need to learn it is their responsibility. We each have them and we do them because we love each other and want to be proud of our home.

Also if our child wanted to go our and play, her room needed to be in order.

If she wanted to invite a friend over, she needed to help make sure the house was picked up.

If she wanted to go to the movies. To a game... Party..

My kids (5,5&8) have consequences if they don't do their chores. I don't use rewards because they don't work long term. The chore chart was great at first and then lost its appeal. I want them to help out because we are a family and we all have to do our part. If I spill something, I need to wipe it up attitude. Since they were really young I have told them, "We are a family and we help each other in this house."

Usually they lose things for a consequence like time on the DS, tv time, dessert, etc. If they don't pick up their rooms/playroom, I will put the toys up for several days. I have only done that a couple times and now they know I mean it when I say, "pick up or else..."

I resist the urge to do it for them. For instance, I like for all the beds to be made each day. My son occasionally doesn't because he is late or just lazy. I shut his door and leave it. That night when I tuck him in, I tell him, "You need to make sure you make your bed in the morning." Not nagging. Just matter of fact. If he doesn't, he will get a consequence.
Once they get into the habit, they just do things without being asked.

Good luck!

Chore charts are good because they show each family member what to do, but stickers work for a few days then lose their effectiveness. Also, rewarding them materially for doing chores kind of sets you up for having to reward them even as they get older for things like taking out the trash, mowing the lawn, picking up younger siblings from school, etc., so they need to learn to do chores because everyone does them, it's part of their family responsibility.

That said, offer them the incentive of earning a privilege, like watching a particular DVD or playing a certain video game for 30 to 60 minutes. (Not time with you or dad, spending time together shouldn't be conditional.) The key is they don't get to keep the item, it's yours, but by doing their chores for "x" amount of days they earn the right to use it. The incentive might be different for the 4 year old as opposed to the oldest, but the premise is the same, you keep it, they earn the privilege of using it, and only when chores are done without complaining or being prompted.

Wish I'd known this works years ago, lol ; )

How old are they? With my kiddos, being 2 and 7, I have them do chores while I'm doing chores, and I turn the music on and that motivates us all to move to the 'beat'. :-) I love listening to music while I do chores. It gets me pumped up and energized. It does the same for my two. They will pick up their toys, and my 7 year old will help me dust, and help take out the trash. My two year old helps put away toys and he likes to help me push the vacuum. He gets a kick out of that. lol While we do chores, we sing and dance around too. A little exercise in the mix for us. :-) We need it. LOL
Hope the music idea helps.

I agree that everyday chores should not be rewarded. They are a part of the family, and they can contribute to the household by keeping their areas clean and helping with the extras. We always had 'assigned' chores, that rotated on a weekly basis so no one was stuck with the bad ones. (dishes, sweeping, dusting, etc.) We were also expected to do our own laundry and keep our rooms clean.

Our motivation for finishing our chores were privileges. If we DIDN'T do our chores, we lost them. NO TV until chores were done. NO dessert or treats if we didn't do them... NO going to friends' houses, etc. For the younger kids, you could say NO toys or NO treats. It works for my 17 month old! She knows that she doesn't get her bedtime snack until after she picks up all her toys. She has started picking them up on her own, then bringing me her box of graham crackers. :)

Of course, if we went above and beyond, did extra chores, or maybe went all week without having to be reminded, THEN we would get a reward. Maybe we got extra TV time, or if we went out to eat the kid who did really well would get to pick the place, get to sit in the front seat (when we were all old enough), stuff like that.

Love and Logic has excellent chore systems. You should look it up.

We do not reward the older kids for chores. They are a part of the family so must do their fair share. They are 7 and 8. Now, for our youngest, we do a simple reward just to get her motivated, but the reward will go away with time. She gets to sticker her chart. She is only small, so she just has - clean her room - make her bed and put shoes away. Lol. It's cute actually, and she loves it.

If the boys do not do chores in a timely manner they lose privileges, such as tv, toy room, dessert, or friends. If they outright refuse to do chores dinner is gone and it's bedtime.

This was motivation enough for them. After a couple rough weeks, and a few hungry night, they got the point, and now have their own routine of playtime, homework and chores, and they still have time afterwards for more play and family time.

Thank God for Love and Logic!

Oh my....boy am I flagging this one to watch for ideas! I need help too!