How to Create a Chore Chart With Incentives

When children participate in household chores, they experience a sense of pride and accomplishment that builds self-esteem. If parents introduce the concept of daily chores for children when they are young and enthusiastic, the children never question that these responsibilities are a normal part of the functioning household. Parents can implement a chore chart with incentives for their children as early as age two.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

1. Assign age appropriate chores. Setting the table may be too difficult for a three-year-old to accomplish alone. Break larger tasks into simple jobs, such as, put napkins on the table."
2. Use visual aids to make the chart easy to read. Children need not be readers to have their own chore chart. A picture of a cat and her dish reminds the preschooler to feed the cat.
3. Work with the children to help them accomplish their chores. Although parents must not complete a child's chores, children are cooperative when they feel that their efforts contribute to the family unit and are more than just random labor tasks.
4. Ask for the child's input in creating a reward system. Parents might believe that an allowance or candy treat is the most powerful motivator, but a child may wish for an increase in privileges.
5. Allow the child some breathing room as he learns how to complete the chore. Parents must give up some control when they assign tasks to children. A child may not clean the counter with the exacting precision a parent would, but recognize the difference between intentional sloppiness and undeveloped motor skills.
6. Consider offering daily small rewards and weekly large rewards. For example, you can give a child a small candy treat or an extra bedtime story for each day that all chores have a check beside them. At the end of the week, the child can pick out a small toy from the treasure chest if the entire weekly chore chart is complete.