Ideas for Low Cost Chore/behavior Incentives

For small things, I've let my son pick things out at dollar tree. Everythings a dollar and there's something for everyone just about. We have fun filling his bucket up and then when he does something I think is extra good, and he doesn't point it out himself (as in "didn't I do a wonderful job mom?" hinting he wants something out of his bucket) then he gets something. Best of luck

I have a 'chip jar' for my kids that adds up to something big. They get a poker chip for chores without complaining and they can be redeemed for rewards. Staying up later than normal bedtime is 2 chips, an hour of video game time is 10 chips. Someone else mentioned that they used something similar for potty training.

Something visible helps children see the progress they are making. A sticker chart would work wonderfully. Maybe once you have so many stickers that it touches the blue line you can go to the playground. And once you get so many more past the blue line to the purple line you can get ice cream before going to the playground.

Our chips can be lost for fines. Yelling, name calling, coming inside late are all 'returning' crimes. If you decide to go with this option, use stickers that can easily be peeled off but make sure the event is worthy of removal. If your kids like the idea, the loss of reward can be crushing.

I think it is great that you want to reward you children for good behavior. It will help them become better people.

IF THEY MAKE A MESS THEY HAVE TO CLEAN IT UP . NO FEE TO ME OF COURSE, AND THEY NEED TO PICK UP THE TOYS WHEN THEY ARE DONE PLAYING WITH THEM. the only time i ever paid a kid for doing something was cutting grass. ten bucks a shot and that was for special things like cedar point trips or cell phone use.

I think you have excellent ideas. Another mom mentioned the dollar store. My daughter is still too young for that, but my cousins, who are around your childrens ages, LOVE that store. They love to pick out 4 or 5 things, to them it's like xmas :)

as kathy suggested, dollar tree, deals, places like that have cool cheap things. we bought a pack of glow in the dark necklaces for a buck and when our son has a day of great behavior, he can choose a color to play with at bedtime.

Hi Dehorah,

We have a 7 year old girl, we have her do things like vaccum, fold laundry (we take turns) empty trashes (bathrooms or bedrooms) and she currently is learning how to wash dishes. She is at the age where she thinks it's "totally cool" to help out with that. She doesn't realize she is learning to take over in a few years. I hope some of these ideas may help you.

I have a 4 yr old and a 10 mo old. For he 4 yr old, I use a prize box where I get some candy and some little toys and books from the dollar store that I know she'll like. For example, I am trainng her to make her bed every morning. For each morning she does it, she gets a sticker on a chart I've made. When she has 7 stickers, she gets a prize from the prize box. Same thing when she was going to the potty, but forgetting to flush. She got a sticker each time she remembered to flush which added up to a prize, now she flushes every time.

My baby sitter has another good idea. For each child who gets through the day with only 1 or 2 strikes for bad behavior they get a play dollar. 3 strikes or more, they don't get one. Once they earn 5 play dollars, they get a real dollar, then she takes them to the dollar store every so often to buy a toy. That might work better with your older 2 kids.

Oh, D., inspiring kids to complete chores and have good behavior is common. I'm a mom of 4 grown children now and I remember this same challenge. First of all, your setting a good example for them is essential -- your being busy yourself in things about the house getting "your chores" done with a good attitude, perhaps even singing, humming, smiling enjoying what you do - never grumbling. You have a lot of household chores yourself, simply because you have your lovely children, so serving them in a happy way, sets a great tone for them. Sometimes working together, having the children help you or you helping them is encouraging. Racing to see how fast we can get the chores done -- not competeing with each other, but trying to beat the clock. Think of ways to make work fun. Work is a good thing and should not be a time of drudgery.
I clean house for a mom who has a peg board for each child (like a wood coat rack with pegs, but small). There are an identical group of tags on each child's board with a chore listed on each tag. As each chore is finished they flip the tag over. When all are completed, the last tags are reward cards. I think they "collect" their rewards and after so many they get a reward. There is also a "good behavior" card that when the child does something exceptionally well (based on attitude), the parent plans an outing or something as a reward. (such as a one on one outing with parent). You could do your own system.

I remember a time when I saved a large Valentine Heart candy box, and put trinkets of interest in it. It stayed on top of the refrigerator and when the children were especially good or did their jobs especially well, or offered to help etc., they got to choose something. You can use your own imagination.

I think also, it's good to teach the children that chores are to be done before play.. do chores early in the day, and happily. Serving one another through our chores because we love one another and praising them for good attitudes goes a long way. Praising and thanking them when a chore is completed. I was far from being an organized mom and many times our house was a mess and I never fully accomplished getting my kids to do chores when they should, but everyone of our 4 children today have excellent work ethic today, and are treasured in their employments because they do their best and follow through til the end. Our children comment that their mom and dad worked and set a good example. I guess they learned the value of how they were shown and instructed even though it didn't show up entirely when they were at home. Don't give up. Be consistant. It will pay off.
L.