Job Chart

Before school got out last spring I made this job chart. I spent hours making it, painting it, waiting for things I bought for it to come in the mail, and then many hours putting it together and waiting for my husband to screw the metal sheet to the wood sheet which ended up weighing what feels like over twenty pounds. 

I hated asking everyone twenty times to empty the dishwasher, make their beds, and get dressed in the morning. Not only that, I work, so therefore I can't do what I do alone and they were getting old enough to have more responsibility around the house. I remember my saturday jobs and wanted this to be a part of my children's lives too. So here is how it works. 

Marin, Samantha and Ben all have a sheet on the job chart. I made job magnets because Ben can't read so all he has to do is look at the pictures . . . besides the magnets are way cuter than just words. There is a to do list and a done list. Everyone has six jobs in the morning, this sounds like a lot but just keep reading. The first four are the same for everyone Marin, Samantha and Benjamin. They have to get dressed, clean their room, eat breakfast and they have a homework magnet that isn't done until after school. These are the four I was yelling the most about in the morning. Is your bed made? Is your room clean? Why are you not dressed! Oh my gosh you didn't eat breakfast . . . (as we are driving to school)?!!!

You now get the picture, now all I have to say is, "Are your jobs done?" and they can remind themselves. They can't play, watch TV, play ipad until those jobs are D.O.N.E.

Now there are five other jobs that are divided by three children. They are also mandatory jobs they must do in addition to their four every morning jobs. These are empty dishwasher, vacuum . . . they have to ask me where to vacuum, set dinner table, empty trash, make lunches. Who ever has make lunches has to help me make all their cold lunches in the morning for the whole week. The lunch magnet only gets rotated weekly. So this is their extra job for the whole week.  I make the sandwhich and they have to pack up the rest of the lunch with snacks and fill everyone's water bottle. If you forget this, the wrath of each other is enough to make each other not forget. I've decided not to intervene and let them remind each other. I call it invoking responsible on something that is super important. No food means you go hungry which is very upsetting. 

Empty dish washer and set table go together, vacuum and clean down stairs also get rotated together daily. I've clumped them so they are evenly hard. 

Each day they do all of their chores they get a black magnet on the bottom of their sheet for that day. 

They are many, many, many "extra" jobs they can do in order to earn more magnets or to earn back magnets that have been taken away, yes we take them away for bad behavior. Which is like losing an entire day of jobs because of serious offenses it's been a strong incentive for good behavior in the house. 

Now the reward . . . 

Every Friday we count up their magnets and I had out "mom bucks" and bring out the "mom store." I was giving a $1 per mom buck, but this was getting expensive, so I changed to the "mom store." This is a bucket filling with goodies ranging from $3 to $22 (Mom bucks), daddy has been putting more expensive things like $50 and $100 (Mom bucks) items to make them save up. 

Result- my children love it! Want to wine in the morning? I just tell them we can not do this and no more mom store and this quickly fixes their attitude.  Plus my house is clean when they leave for school!!! 

(As you can tell int he picture above there are other things that have made their way by my job chart. Things like a box of pencils, approved reading material for after school, three egg timers for things like playing video games, 20 min. of reading after school, or watching tv for a set period of time. It's my little corner of raising responsible children!) ;) lol

Marin asked me today while in church, "What does "Put your shoulder to the wheel" mean? This was a good time to explain about working hard and not complaining. That doing these things is a godly attrabutes we should strive to have.  This gave me an idea of hanging the job chart vertical on the wall with a script over the top that says, "Put your should to the wheel." Normally I hate quotes on walls, but this seemed like it would drive a point home. We will see if I actually do it! For now it's been a great addition to our home!!