School's out in a few days and my plan is ready. Lately I've been frustrated with the sheer number of times it takes me to ask my children to do something before they will actually do it. It's like they automatically tune me out until I'm in their faces and we are late for something.
But I refuse to do it all summer long. Asking a thousand times for someone to do something makes me sound like a total nagger and it's downright annoying. Plus, it makes my throat hurt.
So my kids will all be hired as interns in our home this summer and they will work for what they want. There will be on-the-job training offered for all chores, since the past few months have made it clear that we each have drastically different definitions of what "clean" means. Good performance will be rewarded and there will be consequences for poor performance.
Of course, I'm not giving them a choice on whether they want to apply for said internship or not. But they've been enjoying the perks for way too long and I think it's time we held them accountable. So here is my plan:
Job description:
To be completed first thing in
the morning:
Make your bed
Say prayers
Get dressed
Eat breakfast and clean up
anything you used or got out
Empty your part of the dishwasher
Brush teeth
To be completed sometime before
dinner:
Pick up anything you either got
out or used during the day and put
it away
Clean up your bedrooms (this
means all clothes off the floor, shoes away, toys in their proper places, and
any random stuff picked up off the floor).
When you hear three short whistle
blasts, it is time to turn off screens. Please turn them off right away. If
another three blasts come before it is off, you will lose a Star and mom
will turn off the power without giving you the chance to save anything.
If mom asks you to do something
more than once, you will lose a Star.
Every Friday is frozen yogurt day (there's a place down the street that they ask to go to every single time we get in the car). One froyo trip costs 70
stars, which is what you will earn in one week if you do all your jobs each day and don't lose any stars. If you don’t have
enough stars on Friday but someone else does, they will get froyo and you won’t. Sorry, but that's life.
Benefits:
You will be fed three meals and
one to two snacks per day.
You will be transported to and
from playdates, sports and other activities.
Funding will be provided for said sports and other activities.
You will have a place to sleep
every night, with adequate air conditioning and/or fans and blankets.
Boat outings, lake days, play
dates and other side trips will be added at the discretion of your employer.
You will earn Stars
for completing your requirements on time, which you can exchange for froyo trips.
Training:
As one of the benefits of your
new employment, you will undergo several days of training, where you will
receive the tools you need to do your jobs well this summer.
We are looking forward to having you on our team!
I made a chart where they can keep track of everything they do each day. I'm hoping it will be motivating to check things off a list and that the threat of losing their froyo trip even if their siblings don't will be enough to keep things under control this summer.
I guess I'll have to keep you posted.
