One of my favorite books from childhood was Hattie Be Quiet, Hattie Be Good by Dick Gackenbach. It’s about a mischievous little rabbit named Hattie that’s just trying to help out. But no matter what she does it isn’t the right thing. She tries to help her mom around the house and cheer up a sick friend, but to no avail. Luckily, Hattie has her happy ending. She finds it in a giant bowl of ice cream. That could be anyone’s dream ending, right?
I thought that with the approach of Summer and longer days, it would be nice to have an effective way for our little ones to help around the house. But with more success than poor Hattie.
So I have a nice, little chore board to help with all those daily jobs. I got the idea for the chore board from a cousin. I cut a board down to 8.5” by 38”, painted it, applied the vinyl lettering and hooks once dry. I made the chore cards using free clipart I found online and then laminated them using adhesive drawer liner.
I love to be organized and having all things in order. I live for checking items off of long lists, whether they’re packing lists, grocery lists or lists of things that need to be done. My kids have inherited this from me. So this is the perfect chore board for them. They get to see what needs to be done and what has been accomplished for the day. Switching the card from “To Do” to “Done” is almost as fun as earning that hard-earned cash. I never said my kids were normal.
Anyway, this has been so successful. At the end of each day they look at their boards and see what they’ve done and try to calculate how much they’ve earned.
Everyday chores (making bed, picking up toys) = $.25 each
Saturday chores (helping scoop poop, weeding) = $1
Being kind to brothers = $1
Doing things without being asked = $.50 - $1
Miscellaneous jobs = $$ (to be decided)
The money is fake money, but can be used in a number of different ways.
Get rid of one chore = $5
Computer time (1/2 hour) = $1
TV time = $1
Dad and Me time (dinner, ice cream, movie, bowling) = $30
Mom and Me time = $30
Trip to Sonic to get a drink = $5
Your Choice of Dessert at a Restaurant (we never get dessert) = $20
Trip to Dollar Store for Two Items of Choice = $10
Blood Family Store (stocked by Target’s $ Spot) = Items marked individually
At the end of each week, we tally up the chores completed and then drop the earned money into their own jar. Each has their name on their jar.
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| See, look at what great helpers they are! |
My kids usually save their money up for a long time and then go on a spending binge. It’s fun to watch them not only learn responsibility at home, but responsible spending. They watch those dollars closely and spend them deliberately.
Tonight we read the story and then made big ice cream sundaes that Hattie would be proud of.
What do you do in your home to encourage responsibility around the house?
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