Of Children, Chores and Schedules
The timer is your friend. You can set the timer during chore time to keep everyone working quickly so the jobs don’t stretch on endlessly, as they can. Or you can use the timer to motivate a dawdler and reward quick work with tickets for toys or art and craft supplies from mom’s store or computer or video time.
Planning fun such as field trips, computer time, or videos into a schedule and making that element of the schedule conditional upon finishing chores, completing schoolwork, and maintaining good behavior is a method I have found to be workable, primarily because it teaches consequences for uncooperativeness. Extra chores can be added for complaining about the chores.
Computer time at the end of the day is available to my son if all his toys and clothes are picked up from the house before dinner. This doesn’t always happen, but when it does I am glad to let him play one of his many games, most of which are educational anyway.
We also have fun Fridays where I usually award coupons or certificates to both children for general good behavior or one particular good deed done during the week. Fridays are also for field trips, or a shopping trip for a special toy. This is a good carrot to hold out when the chores seem unbearable to a tired five-year old.
Another motivator is, I must admit, the Clean-up Fairy. We don’t do Santa or the Easter Bunny but I found this fantasy character too practical an idea to pass up. I borrowed the idea from Pam Young and Peggy Jones’ book, Side-tracked Home Executives. Currently, our Clean-up Fairy is remarkably similar to the tooth fairy. She leaves gifts on the pillows of children occasionally when she happens to be in the neighborhood and finds a perfectly picked up room during the night.
Of course, certain duties need to be expected as a responsibility related to the privelege of being part of a family, but greasing the wheels a little with positive rewards for general cooperation or specific tasks, even paid jobs, can keep peace and harmony in the home and prevent discouragement, even burn-out, for both parents and children.
Taking the time to work out a schedule that includes daily time for household chores, along with other responsibilities, will force you to examine your life, establish clear priorities, improve your quality of life and give you a
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