Comments on: TIPS FOR CHORES AND ALLOWANCE

By: the so called me

the so called me — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 05:01:48 +0000

Little Paychecks

Allowance?
…

By: Milander

Milander — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 15:06:42 +0000

The first and most important lesson I taught my kids was to do what they’re told. After that came chores and household tasks. I do not rewardmy kids (2 boys) for things I would expect them to do normally i.e. tidying up their room, helping put stuff away around the house and helping in the kitchen etc. I DO reward them for doing things that are extraneous like helping me pick up after myself, collecting all the rubbish around the house, walking MY dog because I’m too busy to do it. They both get a generous allowance a hundred pounds a month, wait a sec, out of it they are expected to save at least 20%, buy any needed items, pay for their school meals and bus/train journeys. It was awful for the first 6 months, they used it all up on games and toys and snacks. After a few hard lessons they (I still get headaches thinking about it) learnt to balance the money they even got to the extent of learning that “if I avoid buying this now and wait a few months it will be cheaper so I will be able to buy more/the collectors edition/the 10Gb one” et al. I love my two boys but I have also realised that you have to give children enough rope and if you handle it correctly and stick by your convictions they won’t hang themselves but will learn valuable lessons.

The best thing is that by giving them a monthly allowance and showing them how to work it, I can have frank and painless discussion about money with them. Unlike myself, they have to problems talking about money with me or my wife, myself, my father gave me nightmares about money and his “let’s sit down and see what you spent this month, get your bank slips out”. Money destroyed my relationship with my parents, I’m glad it has not destroyed mine with my sons.

By: Emma

Emma — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 03:41:39 +0000

My daughter loves doing the dishes for me (go figure!), and also has the responsibility of feeding our dog and cat, and making sure they have fresh water inside and out. I recently started her a bank account, and now transfer her allowance directly in every week. After reading your article, I feel quite mean, since I only give her $2 per week! This system works really well though, because she can see through her bank balance how much $2 mounts up to over a year, and her account gives her a terrific interest rate – far better than mine.

I like the ideas in this article though, and I certainly relate to the “gentle reminders” part. Luckily, the pets remind Miss M of their own accord – and they’re far more pushy than me.

By: Robin

Robin — Tue, 18 Sep 2007 03:05:51 +0000

The key thing you noted here (that I hadn’t before considered) was to choose chores that are black and white. You ARE right–clean IS a relative term! That’s helpful to think of it that way.

We have never given allowances (my husband isn’t wild about it), but we do compensate them for the big jobs. Keeping their room straight, putting away clothes, and helping in the kitchen is expected. We’ve discussed allowances, but I can’t believe they haven’t pushed it…I guess those “big jobs” come often enough and at the right times … .

Great ideas, you’ve clearly thought these through.

By: Mother Approves Blog » Archive » Carnival Of Family Life

Mother Approves Blog » Archive » Carnival Of Family Life — Mon, 17 Sep 2007 19:09:22 +0000

[...] On ALLOWANCE & CHORES: kellyc presents TIPS FOR CHORES AND ALLOWANCE posted at Pass the Torch, saying, “Tips for chores and allowance that have worked for her family. She invites you to share yours as well.” (approve) [...]

By: Mary

Mary — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 21:09:17 +0000

This something we are struggling with with Anna, and we still haven’t found a system that really works. BUT I think you made a great point about there being different standards for what is considered clean. I’m going to have to rethink what Anna is capable of and what is also age appropriate. Her chore chart needs a revamp because some of the things on there are things she should be doing everyday anyway, and while they were appropriate to motivate her to do them when she was 4-5 (brushing teeth etc), I think we can eliminate them from the chore chart now so her list of things to do doesn’t seem so overwhelming.

By: kailani

kailani — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 08:38:40 +0000

My 5 year old has been asking to do chores so she can save her money to buy High School Musical things. This was a great informative post for me!

By: Kelly

Kelly — Thu, 13 Sep 2007 23:30:50 +0000

Thank you all for your comments.

And Chili – I read somewhere once the suggestion of one dollar per year of age, but that just seemed like more money than they would spend responsibly. Too much junk, which results in more mess and more work for me. I don’t like “stuff” for the sake of “stuff”.

Last year when we homeschooled, I gave more chores, and more money, but it was frustrating because they never did the jobs well enough for my expectations. This works for us because its a doable amount of effort, expectation, and pay.

I hope this helps!

By: Lazy Organizer

Lazy Organizer — Thu, 13 Sep 2007 19:16:10 +0000

It’s true that kids are clueless! The rule around our house is that kids must tell me when they’re done with a job so I can come check it. If I haven’t checked it yet, it’s not done.

Great post.

By: cheri

cheri — Thu, 13 Sep 2007 16:16:18 +0000

Thanks for the input. Lately we’re struggling with chores more often than not and we’re trying to see what works without the screaming matches!