tell me about the reward system you use w/ your kiddos

[luvmyfam444]

I need to start some reward system before summer gets here - I tend to punish not reward my kids & its gonna make for another rough summer if I don't come up w/ omething more positive....

Any help you can give??

 

[CathrynRose]

If theyre good - theyre allowed to live another day <evil laugh>



Money works with mine .... in amounts revelant to their age.

 

[CEDmom]

I don't know how old your kids are or how many you have but here's an idea:

Set up a sticker chart and assign points to various activities/treats. Designate 1 day as your "fun" day. Let your children earn points for good behavior and lose points for making bad choices. Depending on the points each child has earned during the week they can each decide 1 thing to do that day. The activities/treats don't have to be expensive. They could be choosing what to eat at a certain meal, picking a video to watch, getting out of doing a chore, staying up late, not having to take a bath (send them through the sprinkler instead), picking a board game the whole family will play.

 

[Robinrs]

It definitely depends on the age.

At 13 my son has a collection of DVDs that he's always trying to add to so he has to earn the money. He does not get paid for chores, just EXTRA stuff. My sister also gives him money for "handyman" things she gets him to do around her house.

 

[THESCHULTZFIVE]

We used to have a reward box where each Friday, if my oldest DD had been good, she would get to pick something out of the box. Without looking, she would just stick her hand in, feel around and pull out something. We would put mostly dollar store toys in it. Just little stuff. It was just really fun for her to earn something and pull it out and be surprised. She's to old for that now so we're just setting up an actual allowance system and getting ready to start our DD4 on the reward box.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

We are doing a sticker allowance system. The girls are earning money for a new bike. However with rewards not immediate--someone suggested more frequent rewards.

Example:

Before breakfast--they must get dressed, make their bed, and brush their hair (rising 1st grader and Pre-K kids). The reward--breakfast! They did pitch a fit the first day (but did it) and I haven't heard a peep since.

They do it automatically.

I even use it before dinner now.

(Pick up the toys in the Living Room before we can have dinner).

Mind you--these are basic things--but heck it is working for about a week now. which is the longest they have done anything consistently in terms of rewards for actions/behavior.

They are still earning stickers for their bike and I just adjusted the price to a penny per year of age per sticker earned. So if they do all their basics in one week the oldest gets $1 and the youngest 60 cents. They can earn a sticker per extra work (helping mommy with her chores).

 

[Papa Deuce]

They do what I ask, They don't get a hiney whoopin!







Ok, now really, my kids are 5. We use a sticker based system. When they get enough stickers they get money. THEY absolutely love it! In fact, they ask us HOW to get MORE stckers.

 

[ImarriedGrumpy]

My parents had a few different reward systems they used at different times.

The first was just cash! Mom wrote out each chore on a colored index card. Yellow cards earned 10 cents, blue cards earned a quarter, green cards earned 50 cents, and pink cards earned a dollar. Yellow cards were things like "clean the light switches", "pick up and put away all your toys in the living room", "set the table for dinner", etc. We each had a section in the file box, and when we completed a task we moved the index card into our section. At the end of the week, she added up what we'd earned and that was our allowance for the week. Only did two yellow chores? You only got 20 cents. Did 10 pink cards? you got $10.

Another was "privilege points". We earned points towards privileges by doing chores, being obedient, etc. Watching TV, having a sleep over, picking the menu for dinner, etc. all had to be "bought" with privilege points.

Sometimes we had special deals worked out. I really wanted a stereo system, so my parents told me I had to earn it and show them that I could handle it. The deal was that I had to keep my room clean for a year, and then I'd get a stereo. If it got messy, they would give me a 10 day warning. If I failed to get the room cleaned up in those 10 days, I'd have to start all over again. It worked for me - it took me about 20 months to earn it, but I was thrilled when I did. 20 years later, I still have that stereo system!

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

My hubby told me if I kept the house clean for 3 years I'd get a new ring.

I got the ring anyway---but I don't have a clean house.

I am just not motivated to clean the darn place other than just for the sake of keeping it clean. LOL!

I'm impressed with the earning of the stereo!

 

[XYSRUS]

I agree with CathrynRose...you do as I say/ask...you get to see another day...I have four boys and they are all expected to contribute to the running of the house without geting anything in return except food, water, clothes, a warm place to sleep, entertainment, internet access, a solid education, time with their friends...you get the picture. I think kids need to help out b/c they are part of a family and need to. Then not one person feels taken advantage of (Usually Mom or Dad). Enough though, if you want to use a reward system many people I know use a token system(stickers, pennies etc...) and then the kids will get a big reward for saved up tokens. Good Luck!