A worker is worth his wages

We have long wondered about the best way to handle household chores, and we've tried a few things that just haven't worked. But, a couple of weeks ago, we instituted a new system, which we are all very pleased with, so far. The way it works is all the chores and their monetary values are printed on magnets and kept on the freezer in the utility room. And each child (old enough to do chores) has a magnet with his/her name on it. (There are also separate assigned, non-negotiable, non-paying chores that must be done). Once the children have completed all their school work and regular chores, they then have the opportunity to earn some money with the elective chores. They may choose from any of the listed chores that haven't already been done by someone else. Each chore may only be done once a week, and only if it needs to be done. They must tell me which chore they intend to do, and I must show them how to do it, if they've never done it before. Then, I have to inspect the work, before a chore magnet can be put under a kid's name. On Sunday, we tally up each kid's pay. Chores can be divided, but then, pay also has to be divided. The system works well, I think, for several reasons. One is that the kids can pick their own chores, and they can compete for the "best" ones. Our kids are also motivated in the competition with one another to make the most money each week. And they also take pride in the jobs they have done and try to keep things a bit neater. Besides all that, the other chores seem to be getting done more quickly and without as much prompting, so that the paying jobs can be tackled. I'm so glad we found this system, and I hope it continues to work so well for us. How do you handle chores at your house?

This week's completed chore chart

*I have already been asked by several people what is printed on the chore magnets, so I am adding a little update here to clear up the fuzziness: Our assigned, non-paying chores include loading/unloading dishwasher, taking out trash, setting/clearing table, and picking clothes up off the floor. Ruth also has a paying job that is only hers, which is doing the laundry. Some of our extra paying jobs are dusting various surfaces in the house (window sills, base boards, cabinet doors), cleaning potties, tubs and sinks, sweeping the front porch, picking up toys and trash outside, cleaning out the van, wiping down all the stainless appliances and straightening books on the bookshelf. Most of them are valued at 50 cents, but some of the bigger jobs are a dollar or more. I think each family has to decide for themselves which chores are for pay and which are just a contribution to the family. And, each family also has to decide what the right value of each chore is to make it meaningful to their kids. If there is a job that particularly needs to be done, and no one selects it, I can do it myself and the kids can loose the privilege of getting to earn money for it, which they don't really like because they think of these as "their" chores.