Questions About Allowance and Chores

Hello A. :-)

I do not pay for chores. I make this perfectly clear that chores are a responsibility that each family member must contribute. When the kids grow up, who is going to pay them to keep their own homes clean? I give an allowance and I tell my kids that the money they get is so that once again, they can learn how to handle, save and spend properly. I give $1 per year of age a week. So my 14 year old gets $14 a week which equates to plenty at the end of the month. I feel as parents our job is to teach them to be productive adults so to pay them for things they will have to do in the future for no pay (unless they go into the hospitality business) is unrealistic. As far as chores, my kids are responsible for their bedrooms, their bathroom and they alternate kitchen duties. As they got older, they learned how to do their own laundry and how to mop and vacuum floors and to dust. Start with his room and his bathroom, these are the places he frequents and would have a vested interest in their cleanliness. Hope this helps! Have a great weekend!

A little about me:

Single entrepreneur mom of 2 teenagers 14B, 17G both honor roll students and daughter going to College in fall on Scholarship (proud mom, had to put that in there) :-)

My daughter is almost 3, but we already have small chores for her to do like picking up her toys when she is done playing. She is also starting to help us unload the dishwasher - a chore that she took on all her own. I grew up knowing that chores were something the entire family helped out with as soon as the child was old enough to understand simple directions (thus my daughter picking up her toys). That being said, an 11 year old should be more than capable of doing most chores around the house (dusting, vacuuming, laundry, dishes, cleaning the bathroom). Personally, I feel it is something that should be done as a family so the children see that the parents are doing the same things the kids are doing.

As far as an allowance is concerned he is of the age to earn an allowance and to learn the value of money. How much of an allowance you give him is soley based on your financial capabilities - though I like the $1 for each year of age suggestion. I always got an allowance growing up from a young age (I think about 5). But we also had a very clear understanding that if we didn't do our chores for the week, we did not get our allowance. I know this ties the chores and allowance together (don't do the chores, don't earn your money), but I was raised by my grandparents who were very strict with us and had specific expectations of us as far as keeping the house clean, doing our homework, etc. It made me a strong believer in working hard and earning your allowance. Even more so because I have a 15 year old sister-in-law who does not lift a finger to do any housework, but is given pretty much whatever she wants and is constantly handed money to go to the mall, movies, out with friends, etc. And she is a brat for it. She knows she gets no disciplin or structure and doesn't have to do any housework and takes full advantage of it. Again, it just makes me believe even more that if a child wants money every week for activites and such, they should help earn that money.

I commend you for getting your son to do chores and providing him an allowance. Being raised the way I was, it really bothers me to see so many kids just handed whatever they want and not have to do any work for it. I personally am hoping to find a good balance of the way I was raised vs. the way my husband was raised.

I would suggest a commission instead of allowance. Commission on some of the work he does. Not all chores should be worth a commission. Those chores are "just because" you are part of the family. Examples of noncommissioed chores: putting his dirty dishes into the sink after meals, keeping his room clean,taking care of feeding any animals. Commissioned chores: unloading/loading dish washer, cleaning bathroom, vaccuuming... You know your son's maturity level on what he can handle. I would give a dollar per chore completed. You can also teach him to put a percentage of his earning away for tithing (if you believe in that), spending and saving. Use labeled envelops for each. This is a great age to teach financial responsiblity
Good luck.

C.

About me: Single mom of 14yr old boy. Busisness owner

Go to www.daveramsey.com and order the Financial Peace University Jr. kit. It works on the theory of paying children a commission instead of an allowance. If they complete the assigned tasks they are paid the allotted commission. Then the children are encouraged to place their money into three envelopes (giving, saving and spending). The kit comes with the commission board, a calculator, a change purse, three envelopes (sturdier than regular envelopes), a CD to explain to the children how the system works, a book and a board to set the goal of how to save for a special purchase. The kit used to be about $20. The system is great for teaching the kids about responsibilities. A commission is only paid if the work is completed. Awesome system. Totally worth checking out.

the age of 11 is a fun age,whether it be boy or girl. i have 5 children and now grandchildren and greats also. from the beginning i started them on if you take something out put it back before you take something else. that starts the cleaning up after oneself. then as they got to around 10 i started letting them help with their laundry, wash dry and put away. then we started on helping do prep work in the kitchen and clean as you go. by 11 and 12 they were cooking simple things. as well as helping with yard work and washing autos. as time marched on they had the basics and kept on going. my children are all in their late 40s and can take very good care of themselves, and they did the same to their children and now we are working on the greats. my 2 boys turned out to be better cooks than my 3 daughters. as for the allowance i had a chore list posted every day on the fridge for the week. as the daily chores were done it was either checked or xed out.the allowance was paid according to the chores completed right. we had a lot of redos. its just like a regular job and this i found to help them develope good work habits. i always reminded to do the best you can so you can sign your name to the job. and we used to take mini trips as fun making memories trips as and extra encentive. im very lucky to have had GODS help in rearing 5 great children. GOOD LUCK GMAJ