People comment about how responsible Mini is. How did that happen? Well, we treat him like a human being. We don’t patronize him the way parents our age do. We let him know he will be held responsible for his actions or inactions.
We allow him to choose his chores. He has a list of chores and how much they are worth. When he completes the chore, either Cowboy or I will sign off on it and the value of the chore will be deposited into his allowance envelop. On Saturday, the signed list from the week is added up and he gets a list of what he did that week, almost like his father’s pay stub. Half of what he earned goes into the bank, the other half his wallet. We have no say in how he spends his wallet money, within reason of course. He has, in the past, saved enough wallet money to buy video games and name brand sneakers.
It works for us, and teaches Mini he needs to earn his spare money for things he wants, that things will not just be handed to him. He loves to see his bank account balance going up.
Some don’t agree with us, and some don’t think he needs to learn the value of saving or earning, we should just give him everything he wants!
What have you found works for you when it comes to your kids and chores?