Get Your Children to Do Chores Without Being Nagged!

My oldest boys are 8 and 10. They have been asking for a while if they can earn an allowance. Every time they ask, I tell them the same thing. "When you do the things you are supposed to do, regularly and without constant reminders, you can then do extra things to earn money." I don't believe in paying kids to do the everyday things that they need to do. Being a part of a family means you take care of your own things and help out with a few other things. I don't get paid to make dinner, or do the laundry, so why should my kids get paid to pick up after themselves?  I've been trying for a long time to come up with a way to put them in control of their chores without increasing the burden on me to keep track and/or nag. Here is what I came up with.

Everyday, Monday through Friday, they can earn one "token" for doing the things that are required of them daily, such as hanging up their book bags, putting their shoes away, putting their dirty clothes in the hamper, hanging up wet towels after a shower, etc. I haven't decided what I'm going to use for a token yet, but it will be something visual, like a marble, a poker chip or a ping pong ball. They'll each be placed in a can/jar that the boys have decorated.  At the end of the school week, they can count up the tokens that they have earned and that will be the number of dollars that they can earn by doing other things.

To make it easy I will post the daily requirements where they can both see them. They will be able to refer to it as many times as necessary to make sure they're doing what they need to to earn the token. I won't give them constant reminders, and I won't nag. If they don't do it, they don't get a token. Simple as that!

On the weekends, they will have a list of chores/duties that they can do and each one will have a payout assigned to it. Since nobody likes to pick up the dog poop in the back yard, that one will probably be worth $5 (the max amount they can earn). Something easier like wiping the counter in the bathroom with a Clorox wipe, will probably only earn $1. I'm still working on all of the things that I want to put on the list, but I plan to include things that will make my life easier like: changing the sheets on your bed, windexing the sliding glass door, cleaning toilets, helping make dinner, setting the dinner table, clearing the dinner dishes, etc. The payout values will be based on how much it helps me, and how often I think they'll choose it. If they don't earn the entire amount by the end of the weekend, they lose their chance. Tokens won't roll over to the next week.

I'm very hopeful that it works as well as I think it will. The boys are excited and my husband is even on board! Next week will be our first week, so I'll let you know how it goes!

Have you tried anything similar to this? Did it work? What would you change?