Allowance - Salt Lake City,UT

so don't pay them to clean up their own messes. Pay them to do a job: take out trash, load/unload dishwasher, mop, pick up dog poo from the yard, rake leaves, fold towels and put them away...a job. This will teach them a good work ethic. If they don't do their job, they don't get paid. Paying them to clean up their own messes doesn't make sense. They need to do that anyhow, so don't reward them beyond the verbal praise for doing that. My parents had us (7kids) write up contracts for jobs we were willing to do and to propose a wage to be paid. I got $4/week for washing the pots and pans...I didn't get paid for washing the dishes, though...we each had a day that we were responsible for and I'd get in trouble if those weren't done, but if I didn't do the pots and pans I didn't get paid. As I got older, I got raises.

I have struggled with a lot of the same issues with allowance. I have 5 children, all of whom are expected to clean up their own messes and keep their room clean. This is the solution I came up with. Each child has a 'chore chart' on our refrigerator which are their chores they are expected to do every day. These things are make their bed, clean their room, clean the living room, etc. Once they finish them for the day, the can mark off the box showing that they were done and then move onto the '$$ maker' list. I made up a list of extra things they can do to earn money and included it on this list. It is things that are normally not on their chores. And I assign each task a dollar ammount. After they complete a chore from the 'money maker' list, it has to be approved by mom or dad (to make sure they did it right)then mom or dad writes on the calendar how much money that child made for the day... at the end of the week, we add up everything on the 'money maker' list and pass out the allowance. This has helped because when my kids who didn't do anything during the week saw that they didn't earn any money when their siblings did, it motivated them to get moving! This is a little example of what my money maker list looks like:

Sweep kitchen floor ($.50) ______ (parent initial)
Clean out mom's car ($2.00) ______
Vacuum Living room ($1.00) ______
1 Load of Laundry ($4.00) ______
Rake Leaves/ Shovel Snow ($10.00) _______

I hope this idea helps you, it saves me a lot of extra time around the house, and the kids actually pick up extra chores!

A.

My husband and I, and our daughter (9), have chores around the house. We also each get some spending money of our own. We do not relate the two. On occasion we will offer extra $ for doing or helping with additional jobs-- extra deep cleaning, helping rebuild our pond, and stacking wood we have delivered for our wood stove are some examples of jobs we might pay for.

Currently she gets $4/week. She pays tithing (10%), gets $1 to spend (or put in her piggy bank), the other $2.60 goes into her bank account. She knows, if there is something she really wants, she can take money from her account (with approval from a parent). She likes watching for her bank statement and watching the $ add up.

My daughter is four and we do a small allowance of $2 per week. It is not based per chore it is given if she does 80% or more of her chores for the week. We use a program on www.myrewardboard.com, my daughter loves it! The allowance is saved up to buy something special, not just money given to her weekly. We do allowance because we want to teach our child the principle of thithing (if you're LDS) and it is a great way to teach about saving.

I just typed out a huge, long response and then decided it was too long and confusing, so I am starting over. Hopefully this one will make more sense...

My dd (10) receives $2.50 every other week (paydays)for allowance. From that $2.50 she pays 10% tithing and 10% savings. The rest is hers to spend as she pleases. She is required to pay for things she wants, so she has a job list made up by her father and myself and the amts we are willing to pay her for those jobs (Dad did the outdoor job listings and I did the indoor job listings, including babysitting siblings -- Dad is more generous with his pay than I apparently am, she only gets $1/hr for babysitting, but $3 to sweep the driveway and $.20 per weed pulled ((as long as it includes the root)). We may need to make some adjustments! LOL
Anyway, I liked the suggestion made about letting the child make a proposal for what job they are willing to do and for how much. That may give you an opportunity to explain the value of a dollar. Your child may want $20 for doing a $2 job, or $1 for a $5 job. You can explain the problem with their request and negotiate a more fair price for the job, one that agreeable to both of you.
Anyway, I think the amt you pay for allowance should take into consideration what you expect to come out of that. I have a friend who gives her kids $10 a week, but out of that $5 goes to the bank (she takes them each week to deposite it themselves), 10% goes to tithing, so they end up with $4 a week, then she will take them to the $ store and let them spend some of their money if they want or they can save it for something bigger.
My kids each have a dedicated savings account, so we don't make our dd pay into it from her allowance, we just pay in ourselves. Anyway, it really is up to you to decide what you expect and how you want your kids to cover their expenses and contribute to their savings, etc.
Good luck. I look forward to hearing what you decide to do.

Not sure how old your children are, but my two oldest are 13 & 9. Every Sunday night we hold "room Inspections." This is a standing event so they know it's coming. They usually anticipate it and begin early in the day or sometimes in free time on Saturday. But sometimes at 7pm (inspections are at 8:00pm) they start rushing around. They are responsible for their bedroom and their bathroom. Now the bathrooms basically are done with a quick swish in the toilet and wipe the sink & Counter with a clorox wipe. I take care of the tubs/showers. So we have a competition. There's $5 up for grabs and we award it accordingly. Sometimes one or the other gets it all, sometimes it's an even split, sometimes it's $1 for one and $4 for the other...you get the idea. Anyway, it's amazing because you'd think with the competition it would get tense between them (both girls) but if one finishes early, more often than not, they'll help the other one finish before time's up. Hope this helps.

My daughter begged me for a dog when she was about 8(shes now 12). Her allowance comes from taking care of the dog. She spends a lot of money, so I pay her a lot by the end of the month so she doesnt ask me for cash every week. I give her $2 a day, as long as she takes out the dog about 4 times a day, feeds it, makes sure it has water, and she talked me into giving her allowance if she trains it at least an hour a day. As she gets older I pay more, because she needs more things.

I would definitely check out "love and logic magic birth to 6 years". I think it has just what your looking for in terms of allowances and is also a great parenting book. It's by Jim Fay and Charles Fay. Hope that helps, it sure has helped me. Good luck.
K.

Here are tips from a mom on allowance...

http://blog.greensherpa.com/index.php/personal-finance/al...

allowance is a great way to start the money learning proccess. But you shouldn't pay them for cleaning their own rooms. that should just be the base of allowance... you get paid for wat you've done as long as I haven't had to tell you to clean your room this week (If a clean room is important to you) They should only be paid for doing work that involves the whole family, dishes after dinner, yard work, bathroom cleaning, vaccuming, but not just once a week, they have to do their chores all week to get paid. They should have a check off sheet for everyday, maybe one of those calenders that stick to the fridge or something. Bad behavior in school or at home, should also effect the allowances. Squabble happens but fighting or name calling should not. Money is important to kids for some reason, they enjoy having some of their own, it makes them feel like a big kid, and a little independent and the Creator knows how often those fights about treating them like a baby happens! My lil brother has had allowance since he was 5 years old. My mom would give him five dollars a week to clean and vaccum the living room. Even if it took him three months, he would save up for that video game he wanted. But thats the thing, since he got allowance, he wasn't allowed to walk up and ask for a video game, he usually had to come up with at least half. Nowa days, since he is now 15 he must come up with 3/4 of it. So, maybe if you made it clear to your children that if they want allowance then that intitles them also paying for the things they don't need like video games and dvds, they may not be so stoked on the idea any longer. And if they plan on going to the grocery store with you, make it very clear they'd better bring their own money if they plan on trying to get anything out of the trip.

P.S. I wouldn't go for the idea of having them pay for the things they do need, like a pair of new shoes... if they just want them and don't need another pair, then yes. If you have them paying for their school supplies and new school clothes, you will only end up with alot of resentment. That is money you will have to spend normally no matter wat, don't take it from them, they will feel like you are taking advantage of the fact that they work hard for the money you give them and it isn't fair that you take it back for things you would have to pay for anyways. Believe me, I have witnessed this time after time again.

Hi,
I am also a Utah mom of six children! I think allowance is a wonderful way to teach children responsibility. The next time your child wants to buy something, anything, even shoes or clothing etc...just let them pay for it with the money they have earned. It is money you would spend on them anyway and it just helps them to feel a sense of accomplishment. As for a parenting manual. I LOVE James Jones. Google him, I think you'll find it. He does a parenting manual based on gospel values. He is wonderful, a little pricey, but worth it. It will also help you and your husband be on the same page when it comes to discipline. Take it with a grain of salt also, some of my friends felt he was a little to controlling. I think he is right on! Either way you'll be glad you got his cd's. No- It's not a MLM and I don't sell them LOL Good luck to ya
K.