sheryl Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 My dd 13 is wanting an allowance. We don't do allowance, but will pay her for certain jobs. My dh and I believe that every child has age appropriate daily "expectations", such as: making bed, feeding pets, and light household chores, like: emptying dishwasher, folding clothes, etc. Then there are weekly chores, such as: grooming pets, cleaning cat litter box. She does not get paid for these daily/weekly "expectations" to run a household. We are ready to pay her for "jobs". Give me some idesas. So far dd and I have: Wash cars Pick up sticks in yard Rake leaves At what point do you define chore as a paid job? For example, cleaning the bathtub or toilets domestic skills and necessary for running a home for the family. These may be more labor intensive than running sweeper or dusting. Share your ideas on the definition you use and PLEASE ADD TO MY LIST! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 I used to pay my boys for folding all the laundry, picking up the yard before mowing, taking down the recycling. But, I got tired of haggling with them about getting paid for jobs. If they didn't want to do it then they didn't get paid, but sometimes I NEEDED them to do it. If they said no then I was stuck. If they can't say no, then it isn't really getting paid per job. Now, they earn 5$ a week and they do whatever I tell them to do :lol: It works much better for us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 I pay for mowing the lawn and for ironing (which I hate and despise). I do not pay for any smaller household chores- they are part of being a family member. DH and I also pay the kids for anything related to our jobs: scanning papers, working as tutors for my class, building computers from parts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa B Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 I don't pay the kids for anything. However, my dh has been known to pay the kids for the following services: Car detailing Boat detailing Finding (his) lost items (keys, remote, phone) Repairing/sewing buttons on his clothing (In the beginning he thought that was my job, but then he started running out of clothing :D) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pqr Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Nothing, but then again I do not charge them for food and board so assistance around the house is expected. I would deem it a poor precedent were I to pay children for assisting with the upkeep of the house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
somo_chickenlady Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 (edited) I don't pay him for any chores, regardless of what type. Chores and upkeep of a house is part of living in a family unit, IMO. I don't get paid for the chores I do either, and he won't get paid to do his chores when he moves out. We used to pay him for chores, but I found (at least with my son) that the incentive of payment did not encourage him to do it. He was just as likely to procrastinate or gripe about it. We also do not give an allowance. At this point, we give him a certain amount to buy something to eat at youth group each week, and he is free to keep whatever he has leftover and can spend that on anything he wants. This way, I think he is learning to spend him money wisely and to save up for something he wants. When he gets old enough, he will be expected to get a job to pay for the extras that he wants. Edited September 21, 2012 by somo_chickenlady Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 We have a similar philosophy. Help cleaning in the every day course of things is unpaid always. However, we'll pay for special jobs. I'll pay them for doing special yardwork for me. Dh once paid them to untangle a crazy knotted extension cord he didn't want to deal with. However, none of the paid jobs at our house are regular. You can't predict just when they'll arise. It's like working odd jobs. Such is life. We do give a small allowance and the kids earn interest on the money they save with the bank of Farrar. But that's separate - it's not tied to chores at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momma4Boys Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 as the others have mentioned the following are items my kids do as part of the household: laundry (from start to finish) load and unload dishwasher dust scooping kitty litter taking out the garbage cleaning the tables we do pay for: washing & drying the dog cleaning bathrooms cleaning out the cars mowing the lawn vacuuming (per floor - we have a 2 story house) mopping Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happi duck Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Mowing the lawn and garbage Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nakia Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 We do not pay our girls for any chores they do around the house, and they do quite a bit. We do, however, treat them often to ice cream (and other goodies), gifts, and outings. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy in TX Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 I don't pay them for working to maintain their own rooms or bathrooms, or the common areas of the house that we all use. Or for helping me prepare food, take out trash, pull weeds in the garden, or do anything that they as part of the family benefit from. I do, however, pay them to do things that I don't require of them and that should not be their responsibility, like cleaning my bedroom or bathroom, which only dh and I use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaz Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 We pay for training on new chores. So, when ds was learning to clean the bathtub, I paid him the first couple of times. We pay for jobs such as extra yard work, folding my towels (they wash their own laundry), washing the car, and some chores when they've already done some but I need more done that day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vettechmomof2 Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 zero. we do not pay for any chores. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rain Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 We have daily expectations (part of living in the house) but we also have extra that dd is assigned that she earns money for. We do feel it is important for her to see that work/effort=$$$ and no work/effort=no $. The things she earns money for -- helping with our weekly clean (this is a multi-hour job), cleaning out the pet cage, change sheets/wash windows & mirrors/vacuum, take out trash & recycling, clean up the dog poo, and mopping the floors. She also is expected on a daily basis to help with morning/evening routines, pick up, dishes, take care of the dog & give him his meds, help with laundry, help with baby, help get dinner prepared, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dobela Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 I used to pay my boys for folding all the laundry, picking up the yard before mowing, taking down the recycling. But, I got tired of haggling with them about getting paid for jobs. If they didn't want to do it then they didn't get paid, but sometimes I NEEDED them to do it. If they said no then I was stuck. If they can't say no, then it isn't really getting paid per job. Now, they earn 5$ a week and they do whatever I tell them to do :lol: It works much better for us. My son receives $1 for every year of age as his weekly allowance. (I would only do $5 but his grandpa is providing this). In return he must do whatever is necessary and whatever I request of him each week. Some weeks it is just typical family household type stuff but other weeks it may include heavy outdoor work during all of his free time. Another friend of mine pays hourly. The kids can't be slackers. It starts at $1 an hour and includes everything from taking out the trash to making the bed to helping weed the garden. They also can't make a 10 second job last an hour, IYKWIM. As the child gets older and takes on more responsibility, the pay per hour increases. However, at certain ages, the pay becomes other things as well - like permission to use the family car, or more computer time, or whatever the child wants to negotiate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueenCat Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Mowing the lawn (only one child does this, and there is nothing remotely equivalent that the other child does) Taking recycling to recycling center (we pay a little for this, as he's using the gas he paid for to make the trip) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheryl Posted September 21, 2012 Author Share Posted September 21, 2012 Thanks to everyone. Just selected a few here: I pay for mowing the lawn and for ironing (which I hate and despise).I do not pay for any smaller household chores- they are part of being a family member. DH and I also pay the kids for anything related to our jobs: scanning papers, working as tutors for my class, building computers from parts. That's good. Anything related to jobs. I could see my dd helping my dh. We have a similar philosophy. Help cleaning in the every day course of things is unpaid always. However, we'll pay for special jobs. I'll pay them for doing special yardwork for me. Dh once paid them to untangle a crazy knotted extension cord he didn't want to deal with. However, none of the paid jobs at our house are regular. You can't predict just when they'll arise. It's like working odd jobs. Such is life. We do give a small allowance and the kids earn interest on the money they save with the bank of Farrar. But that's separate - it's not tied to chores at all. That's where I'm coming from. She fulfills her daily/weekly requirements/unpaid chores, but I do feel she can learn from getting a very small amount for "special" jobs. as the others have mentioned the following are items my kids do as part of the household: laundry (from start to finish) load and unload dishwasher dust scooping kitty litter taking out the garbage cleaning the tables we do pay for: washing & drying the dog cleaning bathrooms cleaning out the cars mowing the lawn vacuuming (per floor - we have a 2 story house) mopping Good list. Thanks. We have daily expectations (part of living in the house) but we also have extra that dd is assigned that she earns money for. We do feel it is important for her to see that work/effort=$$$ and no work/effort=no $. The things she earns money for -- helping with our weekly clean (this is a multi-hour job), cleaning out the pet cage, change sheets/wash windows & mirrors/vacuum, take out trash & recycling, clean up the dog poo, and mopping the floors. She also is expected on a daily basis to help with morning/evening routines, pick up, dishes, take care of the dog & give him his meds, help with laundry, help with baby, help get dinner prepared, etc. Cleaning windows.....excellent idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elinor Everywhere Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 My dh and I believe that every child has age appropriate daily "expectations", such as: making bed, feeding pets, and light household chores, like: emptying dishwasher, folding clothes, etc. Then there are weekly chores, such as: grooming pets, cleaning cat litter box. She does not get paid for these daily/weekly "expectations" to run a household. We are ready to pay her for "jobs". Give me some idesas. So far dd and I have: Wash cars Pick up sticks in yard Rake leaves At what point do you define chore as a paid job? For example, cleaning the bathtub or toilets domestic skills and necessary for running a home for the family. These may be more labor intensive than running sweeper or dusting. Share your ideas on the definition you use and PLEASE ADD TO MY LIST! :D We pay for jobs my dh & I would have to do ourselves. So, NO pay jobs are: dinner dishes bedroom cleaning, vacuuming, dusting bathroom cleaning (theirs) main living area vacuum/dust mowing the lawn What I'll pay for: breakfast/lunch dishes MY bedroom/bathroom cleaning Yard work outside of mowing Washing cars Garage clean-out I'll be watching for more ideas - my dd had a part-time job last year but now that she's in high school she has no time for it. And the poor girl is used to that money rolling in ... :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justLisa Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Mine get $10 a week each. They help out here and there. We don't have actual chores. They each have things they are better at helping. WE pay them extra sometimes for certain things. More like incentive to take the time to complete something. I think DH gave them each $20 for shredding a massive pile of documents. And by massive I mean bags and bags. Things like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelingChris Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Leaf raking, bagging and dragging to the street. Major pool maintenance. Watering (low payment but it is a boring and repetitive job since we don't have sprinklers yet). odd household cleaning tasks that cleaning people don't do- dusting plantation blinds was one of those. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheryl Posted September 21, 2012 Author Share Posted September 21, 2012 Leaf raking, bagging and dragging to the street.Major pool maintenance. Watering (low payment but it is a boring and repetitive job since we don't have sprinklers yet). odd household cleaning tasks that cleaning people don't do- dusting plantation blinds was one of those. Good ideas.....thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elinor Everywhere Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Leaf raking, bagging and dragging to the street.Major pool maintenance. Watering (low payment but it is a boring and repetitive job since we don't have sprinklers yet). odd household cleaning tasks that cleaning people don't do- dusting plantation blinds was one of those. Ooo, I like the blind-dusting idea. I tried to pay for plant watering, but the money I spent replacing dead flowers wasn't worth it. :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheryl Posted September 21, 2012 Author Share Posted September 21, 2012 Ooo, I like the blind-dusting idea. I tried to pay for plant watering, but the money I spent replacing dead flowers wasn't worth it. :tongue_smilie: Yes, I like that one too and thanked her for it. I added that one to my list. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JenC3 Posted September 22, 2012 Share Posted September 22, 2012 I pay my dd $.75 ds $.50 and dd2 random nickels or dime. This is for keeping their rooms clean. Dd usually gets paid extra for cleaning her sister's room:) I pay extra for outside chores, usually garden work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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