Update on the Chore Chart Thingy

About a month ago I begged here for help coming up with a chore chart that will work. Granted, it's not the chore chart that works or doesn't work, it is the people who follow or don't follow it, BUT certainly there are some methods that are more fitting to each individual family than others. I appreciate all the advice and all the empathy. I found out that I'm not alone in trying to find something great and sticking to it. My friend Robyn assured me that being a free-spirited artist is reason alone to explain my lack of skill in this area. Can that apply to other areas as well?

Sooo... as far as listing chores and checking them off we have decided to go with the free online method My Job Chart. (Thanks, Emily!) A parent plugs in various chores and specifies which child the chore applies to and what day it is to be done. You can even specify morning or evening. The child logs in and up pops their list of tasks to be done on that day. As tasks are completed, the child simply checks the box next to the chore, clicks "I'm done," and then the computer claps and hollers "hooray" for them. (Okay, that part is annoying especially when you have the volume cranked up and don't realize it till you are 3 feet out of your seat.)



Why I REALLY like this method so far (we have been at it for at least 3 weeks):
1- No paper. I'm not a "going green" freak, but apparently it is the in thing for bloggers worldwide. Seriously, I love that I don't have to find a place on my refrigerator or wall to post the chore chart. I merely have to nod in the direction of the computer and the kid gets my drift.
2- It simplifies. Whenever I try to design my own weekly chart it starts to get complicated when there are different chores for different days and before long, the chart ends up looking more like a family tree with all the branches and twigs. With My Job Chart you just enter your complicated system and it displays for your child a simple daily list.
3- My kids like it. What child doesn't find an excuse to get on the computer appealing? Basically, they refer to the charts whenever they have time to work on their chores, and at the end of the day I remind them to log in and make sure they have checked off everything they did.
4- It does the math for me. I put in the rewards which are in our case money. (More green!) I set it up that 100 points is equal to earning $1. On Saturdays, the kids go to their "store" and redeem points for as many dollars as they can just by clicking. Then, we pay them.

For those of you who are just plain nosy or want to judge me... I mean for those of you wanted to get lots of ideas... these are my kids' chores:
Olivia (11) make bed, popsicle job, do homework, practice trombone, wash dishes and walk the dog
Paul (9) make bed, popsicle job, do homework, practice piano, take out trash and help sister with dishes, walk the dog
Faith (6) make bed, popsicle job, do homework, clear and wipe dinner table, feed pets
Seth (2) stay out of the fridge and be cute
We also have bedroom inspection each Saturday morning.

Now, you know I love a chance to talk about popsicle jobs. Popsicle jobs are one of the best ideas I have EVER come across, and my family has been using them for a very long time (Thanks, Lisa!) Go here to get all educated about them. Well, our pop jobs just got smarter! I decided to have them coincide with my main chore for the day. So I chose three simple tasks from my detailed to-do list for the room of focus and color coded the end of our sticks for each day (in rainbow order!) This gives me a little less to do each day and it helps me stick to my schedule.



These are the pop jobs as they stand now:

Monday- bathrooms 1) empty trash cans, 2) wipe Windex mirrors, 3) scrub toilets
(I promise I'm not trying to be mean. The kids actually like doing the toilets which works out well for me. And thank you, Jhona! It really is best to get the bathrooms out of the way at the beginning of the week.)

Tuesday- kitchen 1) wipe outside of trash can, 2) clean microwave inside and out, 3) wipe outside of refrigerator, oven, and dishwasher

Wednesday- living/dining rooms 1) wipe black couches, 2) wipe kitchen chairs, 3) dust entertainment center

Thursday- piano room (which is right next to the front door and stairs) 1) dust piano, 2) sweep front porch, 3) vacuum stairs

Friday- computer area (uh, yeah, these don't really relate to my focus, but the computer area is only so big) 1 and 2) pick up back yard, 3) sweep back porch

And there you have it. Chores. One more home management tidbit to share before I go work on my jobs...



My stair baskets are back. We did these awhile ago and then got away from it, but I'm convinced they are here to stay. And my new "baskets" are less bulky and fit better on the stairs. They are rectangular plastic ice cream tubs. We still need to finish a couple more tubs before everyone will have their own, but we are working on it. The tags are paper slipped into name badge protectors. Anyway, as I tidy up during the day when most people are away, I can just chuck stuff into the baskets which can be emptied by the responsible person later. Or I can even call for a 10 minute pick up when everyone is home, and every one can grab his/her basket and get to work. Maybe I should add "empty baskets" to the chore chart! Hmmm... I think I'll take the free spirited approach with this for now.