How To Get Your Kids To Do Their Chores Around The House
Posted January 26, 2007 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Take out the garbage.
Clean your room.
Rake the leaves.
Mow the lawn.
Shovel the snow.
Wash the dishes.
They’re the marching orders just about every parent gives their kids these days.
But not all of them are listening.
If your offspring are like most teens, they not only don’t appreciate the value of having a specific task to complete around the house, they probably don’t like you constantly haranguing them about it.
Which is where activeallowance.com comes in.
The site was set up by Harvey and Leslie Beck, two parents who got tired of trying to get their kids to follow the rules.
So they decided to take a different approach. The site lets parents log on and create a customized list of chores for their youngsters. You print it out and every night the child checks off the tasks he or she has completed.
And there’s a reward at the end of all that penmanship – each check mark is worth money for their allowance. The more they do, the more they make.
Sixteen-year-old Rachel has gotten used to the idea.
“If I don’t fill it out, I don’t do it, then I don’t get any money,” she explains. “So then I can’t go shopping, I can’t see movies with my friends. It makes me want to do what’s on your checklist because you know that for everything you do you get a reward. So it makes everything a lot easier cause you know what you have to do.”
But there’s another element to this website – it also works as a virtual piggybank. Some money can be allocated to a savings account, another chunk to charity and some can go for entertainment expenses.
That way your kids learn the value of money and wiser ways to spend it – or even save it.
Harvey Beck has seen it work, and it’s not just North American parents who have benefited.
“We have members from New Zealand, from Australia, from The Philippines,” he points out. “Parents everywhere are saying ‘how do I teach my children values, responsibilities, some basic money management?'”
They tested it first on their own kids for three years before making it public.
Not that their brood was crazy about it. “I don’t like that we have to do our chores!” admits nine-year-old Adam.
But even parents will be forced to learn the value of money. Use of the site is free for only one month. After that, it costs $49 a year for access.
To get your free trial started, click here.
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