A simple chore system for kids that really works! {+ free printable chore chart}

Want a simple chore system for kids that really works…even for young kids? Here is the {free} printable chore chart we use and how we encourage everybody to pitch in around the house.When I was a kid, I would wake up on Saturday mornings and head to the kitchen for breakfast. Without fail, I would find a little “gift” sitting next to the cereal bowls on the table–a stack of index cards, one for each child, with a list of our chores for the day.

That was our family’s chore system. We all helped out during the week as needed, and on Saturdays we would be greeted by mom’s perfect handwriting and a happy face at the bottom of our list. Saturday chores were a regular and expected part of being in our family.

Until recently, my own kids haven’t had regular chores. We expected them to clean up after themselves (easier said than done) and help out with jobs around the house when asked, but we haven’t had a system to hold them accountable.

Fun fact: although 82 percent of parents say they did chores as kids, only 28 percent of parents say their kids actually do chores regularly. (Braun Research, 2014)

Why the discrepancy??? I’m pretty sure it’s not that we don’t want our kids to develop a strong work ethic and help around the house. It’s just that so many of us don’t know how to work out the logistics of family chores.

The great chore system conundrum

Maybe it’s just my over-analytical mind, but there are SO many questions to consider when creating a functional family chore system. When I first started thinking about setting up a chore system for our family, my mind was bombarded by thoughts like these:

• How many chores should a child have?
• Should chores be done daily or weekly?
• What time of day is best to do chores? Mornings? After school?
• Should kids get paid for their chores?
• If so, how often should I pay them?
• Should I pay per chore, or pay a flat weekly (or monthly) allowance?
• What kind of chore chart is best?
• And HOW on earth am I going to keep track of all of this and be consistent with everything going on in life????

That last one is the question that has been holding me up for the better part of two years. At one point I actually started a chore system with my boys and designed a cute printable to go with it, but you know what? It flopped.

It was too complicated for me to keep track of and we lost motivation really quickly. Within a few weeks, our cute chore charts were completely neglected.

In the last few months, however, I have really wanted to figure out a chore system that will really work for our family. I have spent hours looking at ALL the printable chore charts available online. I’ve debated the pros and cons of magnet boards, dry erase, velcro, and simple paper and pencil. 

After all that, I finally came up with a super simple system that is working! Hooray!

Why I want my kids to do chores

1. develop work ethic
2. learn about money
3. take responsibility for their choices/actions
4. contribute to the family

Our family chore system for kids

I have three young boys, ages 6, 4, and 1. The littlest obviously isn’t really involved in this chore system yet…we’re just trying to work on putting toys back in the bucket when we’re done playing. He’s actually really good at cleaning up…until he wants to dump it all back out after we’re done…but, you know…baby steps.

For the older two boys, here’s what we do.

First, I created a chore chart. It’s bright and colorful (everything is more fun when it’s brightly colored) and, most importantly, it’s super functional. I laminated one chart for each boy and hung them on a cork board I had sitting around in the basement. My husband and I brainstormed just a few jobs we wanted our boys to be responsible for every day. We started with simple, very doable chores so the boys would be motivated by their success early on. Over time, we will adjust these jobs as needed. Here are their jobs:

Little Man (6)

• Clean out backpack each day after school
• Complete daily reading time (20 minutes)
• Clean up all toys and clothes by bedtime
• One “parent choice” chore

Little Brother (4)

• Complete preschool on the computer (we use the Upstart program)
• Clean up all toys and clothes by bedtime
• One “parent choice” chore

That’s it. Each boy only has 3-4 responsibilities for now since we’re just starting out. As they mature, I’m sure we’ll add to and change their chores. That’s one thing I love about our simple system, though…it’s extremely adaptable.

What are “parent choice” chores?

Each day, my boys are required to do one chore that is chosen by my husband or myself. These chores typically take 5-10 minutes to complete, so they’re not overwhelming. In my four-year-old’s case, I often do the chore alongside him because I’m still teaching him HOW to do a lot of the jobs properly.

You may be thinking, “Isn’t that a lot of effort to think of a new chore every day?”

Well, it would be if I hadn’t come up with a super simple way to automate this system…

We call them “pick-a-stick” chores. Each day my kids ask me for a parent assigned chore. If I have something specific that needs to happen, they do that. For example, on Mondays we need to gather up the trash and take it out to the curb for Tuesday’s pickup.

If I don’t have a specific chore for them that day, I tell them to “pick-a-stick”.

What are “pick-a-stick” chores?

In a nutshell, it’s a pile of popsicle sticks that I wrote a bunch of chores on. These are chores that need to happen regularly, but they don’t need to happen on a particular day of the week.

Here are some of our pick-a-stick chores:

• wipe down the dining table and chairs
• sweep under and around the kitchen table
• clean the garbage out of the family car 
• wipe counter and sink in one bathroom
• wipe down baseboards downstairs (or upstairs)
• clean light switches
• wipe down cabinets in kitchen
• dust the family room

I made sure to keep these chores simple enough that either of my boys can complete them. If you have kids of varying ages, you could even color-coordinate the sticks so the older child picks a “green dot” stick, and the younger child picks a “yellow dot” stick or something similar.

Our rule is that they can’t change chores once they pick a stick. Once the chore is done, the stick goes in the “done” pocket on our chore board.

I’ve been pleased (and quite amused) by how much my kids actually love to “pick-a-stick”. They would much rather do a pick-a-stick chore than one that I dole out to them. Sometimes, they’ll even ask to do an extra pick-a-stick chore just for fun. Knock yourself out, kid! (I have a feeling that enthusiasm will wear off eventually).

So far, they have willingly done their chores just about every day for almost two months. Hooray!

If they do ever moan about their jobs, I simply say, “I will not force you to do your jobs. When you choose to work, you get paid. If you don’t, you miss out on the reward.” It’s important to me that it be their choice. So far, they haven’t refused to complete their jobs. If they ever do fail to do their jobs, so be it. They will reap the consequence of no pay…and I’m pretty sure they’ll learn quickly.

Now the big question…

How do we reward kids for doing chores?

To pay for chores or not to pay for chores…that is the question.

Proponents of paying for chores say that it teaches kids how the real world works (if you do your job, you get paid…if you slack off, you don’t get paid). Giving kids experience with money also helps them understand its value from a young age and gives them opportunities to learn about saving, spending, and managing their money.

Opponents say that if you pay kids for work done at home you undermine their intrinsic motivation to contribute to a family and risk creating little monsters who refuse to help do anything unless they get an immediate reward.

I wanted to teach my kids about managing money, so my husband and I chose to pay our kids for their chores.

However, we still expect our kids to help out with other tasks when needed. At our family meeting where we proposed our new chore system to our kids, we explained to them that there were some jobs that would not be part of the chore system, but they were still expected to do. Emptying the dishwasher and helping set/clean up the table fit in this category. 

I worried a little about how this would go over, but so far it hasn’t been a problem at all. It helps that I can reward willing helpers using our warm fuzzy jar.

How often do we pay our kids for their chores?

In our family, payday is once a week. Since our chore chart runs from Sunday to Saturday, this makes sense for us.

On Saturday afternoon, we get out our boys’ banks and pay them their weekly earnings. We help them divide their money into three categories:

• Donate (10%)
• Save (45%)
• Spend (45%)

“Donate” money can go to your local church or any other worthy cause you want to support. Why donate? Teaching kids to donate a portion of their income encourages empathy and teaches social responsibility. A little money now can create a life-long habit that will make a difference in the long run.

“Save” money in our house gets saved for big, rare expenditures…currently our boys are saving to help pay for our big family vacation this summer (spoiler alert…we’re going to become friends with a mouse). You could also use this category for saving for college.

“Spend” money is what we allow our kids to use as cash anytime they want to buy candy, a toy, or anything else they want “just because.” It’s their disposable income to do with as they please.

Tip: Be prepared to pay!

BEFORE you start your new chore system, go to the bank and get a bunch of money in small bills and coins. That way you won’t be caught on payday without the money you need. I got $40 in one dollar bills, a roll of quarters, and a few fives and tens so they can trade in small bills later. I also had a random assortment of nickels and dimes already at home that I knew we could use.

This was SUPER important for us. Not having money on hand was one of the fatal flaws in our failed first attempt at a chore system a couple of years ago. There’s nothing that will squash a kid’s motivation faster than NOT getting paid as promised for a job well done.

How to make a chore system that really works:

To summarize…

1. Print off a chore chart to keep track of chores. (see below for ours!) Post it in a highly visible, easily accessible location.
2. Assign each child 3-5 meaningful (and achievable) daily responsibilities.
3. Come up with a list of “pick-a-stick” chores (see my list above for ideas)
4. Decide how much and when you will reward your children for your chores. If you choose to pay them, have plenty of small bill and coins on hand for payday.
5. Hold a family meeting to talk about your family’s new chore system. Give kids a chance to offer opinions and ask questions.
6. Get started!

Our system has been going strong for two months now, and I couldn’t be more pleased. My kids willingly do their jobs daily and our paydays have been a great opportunity to teach them about money in a very relevant-to-them setting. 

Download the printable chore chart I created for my family HERE.

Now it’s your turn…tell me about YOUR family’s chore system in the comments below!

Want more cleaning tips?

• The busy mom’s guide to cleaning up: 7 simple cleaning tips
• How to get your kids to clean up: 6 tried-and-true strategies
• Save the world and get kids to clean…a win-win game with a purpose