Chores/allowance

[Fsudisney]

Does anyone mind sharing their plan for chores/allowance for their kids? We have a 7 and 5 year old. They have small chores right now but no money tied to it but they have expressed an interest in earning money.
Trying to come up with a realistic plan that is easy for us to be consistent with!

 

[scrhsa]

We always did it like a job. So many cents/dollars per chore. They had their normal chores that they had to do everyday. Make their beds, set the table etc. Stuff that is pretty much daily. Scrubbing toilets/tubs, raking leaves, mopping, etc were for money. As they got older the paid chores got harder. They HAD to do their daily chores but had the choice to not do the harder chores. Though no chores, no money. It worked well for my girls. I knew other people that it didn't work so well for. They could even offer to do their sister's chores but the sister would have to pay them out of their own money.

 

[Meeko5]

My 7yo gets $5/week for doing his chores. Unloading the dishwasher, sweeping, keeping his room neat, putting away his laundry, and doing his daily reading without arguing.

If he doesn't do his chores 100% of the time, he doesn't get his allowance. Now, I still have to remind him to do his chores but he's good about doing them when I ask.

I found when I tied money to individual chores he would do well for a day or two then the excitement waned and he stopped.

 

[pampam]

DD had chores she had to do. She was part of a family, and expected to pitch in. She also had an allowance. This was to help her understand the value of money, and how to budget or manage it. She learned to save for what she really wanted, and how to wait for what was important to buy. When I was very busy and needed extra help over and above what was normally expected, I would give her extra money, to show her how rewarding it was to work. For example, if I was canning tomatoes, she would bring me the bowls of tomatoes I needed, or wash the tomatoes. These ware easy enough for her to do, yet it was a help to me and kept the momentum going that I needed.

 

[Alesia]

I started giving my daughter an allowance on her 3rd birthday. I gave her 3 banks: one for savings, one for spending money, and one for charity. The deal was that I gave the money in quarters and she had to put some in each bank. I always bought her anything she needed (and gifts, obviously,) but if she wanted something extra, she paid for it.

It's now 15 years later and we're still doing the same system. It has taught her to spend her money wisely, and it makes her proud when she can buy the things that she wants.

She has always had chores, but they have never been tied to her allowance. Giving a monetary incentive makes chores optional. They're not. She does chores because that's part of being a family, not because she wants to get paid.

 

[okeydokey]

We started giving our kids allowance in elementary school, but not tied to chores. They did chores because in a family everyone contributes what they are able.

We started small, with $3 a week, they got to spend 1, save 1 and give 1. They had a giving jar and put the 1 in there each week and it was up to them what they wanted to use it for. Once the savings accumulated, we would match it and take them to the bank to make the deposit.

If they did extra things, wash the car etc, we would pay them a little something for doing that.

 

[Darcy03231]

I had a chore chart with a $ amount next to each chore. Whatever child did the chore got the $. He/she had to get me to sign off that it was done, and done right. Bigger chores had different dollar amounts, ie. taking out the trash/recycling was .50 per bag, but cleaning the bathroom was $5.

 

[hsmamato2]

when mine were young we did a combo.... they had certain chores that were to be done as part of a family... and that is just what you do. Then there were other jobs that came with $1 per job (big or small) We went over which jobs were which,and kept it simple. My kids liked having their own money to spend as they liked. If the paying job took only 2 minutes,it was still $1- if it took 20 minutes,it was $1- so it all evened out- as they got older, the jobs changed,responsibilities increased. ex.- my ds chores are garbage removal,to curb etc weekly as needed- keeping room decent, cooking,cleaning up after himself,etc.grocery lugging,general household help.(the kids have done their own laundry since about 13 yo)- 'paid' jobs have included compost bucket,dishes,vacuum the car,wash the (tiny) dog,etc

 

[Bree]

I'm mean. Just ask my kids. They do chores to earn the privilege of living in my house, using my water and eating my food......

Seriously though....we do not give money for everyday things like cleaning their rooms, putting dishes away, folding laundry, etc. My DH and I feel that doing those things is just keeping the family household running. We do pay for extra chores such as helping to clean out the garage, scooping the cat boxes when I'm out of town or helping DH with odds and ends.

 

[unrequited23]

Our kids do little jobs--feeding the dog, helping unload the dishwasher, dusting, putting away some laundry--and I expect those to change as they get older (they are 1.5 and 4 yrs old). I have always read that chores should be viewed as something ones does because they are part of a family not only to earn money so that the chores get done even when the child gets a job and is earning their own money.

 

[baildrk]

We have it set up where there are chores they must do that have no money tied to them say clean rooms, other normal small chores for themselves, if those are done they can help us with extra chores around the house, mainly ones we have to supervise them while they help us do them to get some money for chores. Right about the time we start planning trips or something extra is when they really want to help and we let them so they can feel like they earned something even though we know their motives which is fine to us as school these days is insane for kids(all I know is I would have repeated the 5th grade about 20 times if I had to do math like they do now) don't make it to serious but also don't make it where its too easy to quick do something for some cash

 

[niffer5150]

my kid has had chores since she was 5 but we offered extra chores in exchange for allowance when she was 10. she got just a few dollars a week at first. we based it on how long would it take to save up for a toy. saving for a month is like eternity in kid time but not so long that it makes a goal toy unattainable. now she's 16 and gets $35 a month direct deposit into her bank account. it's still just enough to encourage thoughtful spending and it's worked. she's very frugal.

 

[tvguy]

My kids had chores, because they lived here and had to chip in, no money was used as an incentive, they had no allowance. Cash they got at Christmas and birthdays from grandparents was their "I want this money". Between the two of them, they always managed to save enough to buy video game systems and games.
Anything they needed, we paid for. Anything they wanted, was on them.
I got flamed earlier here by some for saying parents should pay for their kids college, but that was where their allowance money went.

 

[scrapquitler]

Does anyone mind sharing their plan for chores/allowance for their kids? We have a 7 and 5 year old. They have small chores right now but no money tied to it but they have expressed an interest in earning money.
Trying to come up with a realistic plan that is easy for us to be consistent with!

in our house, chores were not tied to allowance. Chores are just something that everyone is expected to do. I don't get paid for housework, so they don't either. We all get an allowance because we all benefit from the money that our family has. Now if they wanted to do earn EXTRA money by doing extra work, that was a different thing.

 

[2Gma]

No money given for chores and none for allowance either. They have to help with age-appropriate chores because they are part of the family and we all must be responsible and do our part. But they get to do all the fun things a family does though too without paying: go shopping, movies, get toys or items they want (occasionally), and go on vacations (to Disney!).

 

[youngb1978]

I make up a sheet every month for each kid..it has all their chores listed with the date beside it. If it's completed its checked off. If they didn't do it it's xed. At the end of the month I add it all up and they get the money. They also have the options of doing something extra to earn more money. They like it as well so they can see what needs to be done.

 

[neatokimmo]

I'm mean too! She doesn't get any set amount of money from us weekly. She does work at festivals with me, twisting balloons. She started when she was eight, and it keeps her occupied. When she earns money from that ($400 last year), she gets to keep half and put the other half on her hefty gymnastics bill. I think handling and managing that bill builds a sense of pride (she struts into the building on days she puts money in the account lol) and helps her to realize that money doesn't magically appear.

She will start chores when she is ten but I won't pay her for them.

 

[angierae]

Chores, yes. Allowance, yes. But not allowance tied to chores because you'll end up with a kid who doesn't care about the money, and doesn't do anything. Basic chores were expected because of being part of a family and having to pitch in. There was always things available to do extra to earn extra money if she wanted to, though. (She rarely did.)

 

[DnA2010]

DD is almost 12- she is expected to help out (setting/clearing table, unloading/loading dishwasher, room, keeping bathroom tidy, other misc like taking out garbage and recycling, helping poo pick the horse pen, walking the dog, etc) in return we cover the costs of her extra curricular activities, school events and w.h.y. We haven't seen the need for allowance. She gets a bit of money here and there for birthday, for report card from grandparents. I don't feel I should have to pay here to help out, she is a member of the family too.

 

[mommycrawford]

My daughter has always gotten a dollar a week for each year of her age for pocket money, since age 3. It is not tied to chores, but she is expected to conduct herself well, manage her homework and school work, and always make me aware of where she is and who she is with! (I started working at 9, and school had to take a back seat, and I did not want that for her.) Kids always want things adults don't understand, and if she was willing to save to get what she wanted, then she was learning how to value things....a life skill many adults need help with. She is 17 now, has a p/t job now that she loves, and has not spent 1c of the money she has made!...She uses her allowance for outside food, and brings lunch to school. I am thrilled with how it has all panned out!