It seems that every time we go to the store these days, I am met with "Mom, can we get this?" or "Mom, will you buy this for me?". Um, no. I find myself uttering mom-isms that I thought would never come out of my mouth. Do I look like I am made of money? Money doesn't grow on trees! ~*~
The time has come for my child to learn more about the value of a dollar AND the value of hard work. She has a few chores that she does, but we haven't had a strict schedule or chore-policy. Until now. Mwuahahahaha.
~*~
Fortunately for all of us, Sophie (like her mama) loves to check things off of a list. So, she has her chore list and enjoys completing her daily and weekly tasks. We're not talking about child slavery here. The only things on her list are make bed, clean up, set table and empty dishwasher. There's a space for extra points when she goes above and beyond with helping around the house.
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Since we've just started, I don't have my $ amount set for how much she will earn. So, I'm reaching out to all of you experienced moms, or those of you who still remember earning an allowance of your own... what is a fair 2011 weekly allowance for a 5 year old with said jobs? Are there allowance pitfalls I should watch out for? Any ideas and opinions are welcome!
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11 comments:
Anna, my 2 yr old, gets a dollar a day if she makes her bed, puts all her toys away, and at least gets her clean laundry in the right drawer. (We'll work on organization later.) 33 cents per chore, and all goes to her savings account on Fridays.
Just for sheer cuteness alone, she should get $10.00 a week. :o)
Oh, she is quite the little cutie pie! I don't know about 2011, lol, my kids are quite a few years past that, lol (almost 18 and 19)But here's what I did. My kids liked the checklist too, so we got a dry erase board and worked together on a chore chart--there were everyday chores (the usual, bed, roys, table, bring laundry down) and each day had it's own special "other" chore (Monday, help with garbage, Tuesday pair up socks, Wed. wipe out fridge, etc). There were also extra points for extra things they did. At the end of each week, on Sunday, they would get a quarter for each checkmark on the chart. If I didn't have to remind them about their chores all week, we would have a special surprise, like a picnic in the park, go to the beach, lunch at McDonalds with the playpark, etc. Good luck!!
Smiles, Karen
OMG as old as she is and she doesn't have a job yet?
Just jokin'.
She's cute.
PD
I'd say 5-10 dollars is fair, go with the higher costs of things today, when i was little about 20 years ago, I would earn 2 bucks a week doing chores...so 20 years later I'd say 5-10 dollars would be ok...
LOL. I got $7 a month. And I had to put it in the bank to learn banking, then use it for stuff like to buy Christmas presents. I remember buying everyone I knew something for Christmas with about $35. Those were the days.
PD
How about "she does her share of the household chores because she's part of the household", period.
As for spending money, the family can discuss a weekly amount that she can have to do as she wishes...save it for something special or spend it on something she's been wanting but once it's gone, it's gone and she gets no more until the next week.
Earning money is for when you work outside the home and get compensated for it. Jobs in and around one's home are done because it's what people do...take care of their homes and help each other in their homes....period.
Your daughter is precious!
Chores. We have had chores lists for a few years now and sometimes it works well, sometimes not. And who is to blame. The parents. The moment we get slack (or distracted by a stressful life) about keeping up with the chore list or pay out the allowance in time the kids just stop (they are smart...). I give my 6 year old son 5 dollars a week for completing tasks such as laying the table at dinner time, emptying the dishwasher, tidy the hallway, picking up his toys to his room. My 9 year old daughter gets 10 dollars a week vacuuming down stairs 2 times a week, tidy her room once a week and helping me with folding laundry and being available without complaints when I ask for her help. My 3 year old helps pairing socks and helps her brother to put away cutlery from the dishwasher, and she gets no money yet. It is just to get her in the habit.
Like I said it works good sometimes but tend to spin out of control if we don't stay on top of it. The great benefit is that they grow in their personalities, get more responsible and kinda starts to understand value of money. My daughter saved up for a Nintendo DS last year on her own doing chores. I feel if they have a goal fro their savings it is easier for them to complete their tasks. Good luck. And well done for saying no to the demands. That is not an easy one.
PS Only binding left. Started on a baby blanket project with some of the left over vintage sheets. It will be so pretty. Stay tuned. I will post about it all soon. So excited.
Xxx
I'm not the right one to ask since I do not actually believe it really teaches as much as people say it does. Perhaps if you were given enough money that you had to manage then you would learn a thing or two.
I prefer to teach that if you live in a home with a family that you have to contribute. It works and teaches morals too. But, peer pressure sometimes throws this plan aside. It's just another opinion to ponder.
With 3 girls and not much time to organise and supervise jobs etc. We have found it much easier to have the age = $ miss 3 gets $3
I don't separate jobs, they do them all or get nothing, it saves time arguing with my 14 year old over which ones she wants to do, other wise she would choose to do none for $0 i try to make it like a real job, if they are sick they get a day off otherwise they have to do them
I really, really appreciate all of your ideas, opinions, and support. It is so nice when "strangers" take the time to share how things work in their family- it gives us all food for thought and the reminder that we're all in this together :)
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