Why There Will Be No Chore Chart

Filed under , by Alison on 10:14 PM

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My five-year-old recently announced that he wanted  money. I asked him why and he told me he wanted to have some in case he wanted to buy something. Nothing in particular, it seems he just wanted to prepared. He's had an allowance before, but for a variety of reasons, he isn't currently getting one. He said he wanted an allowance and, most likely encouraged by his younger brother's recent sticker chart for potty training, said that he wanted a chart where he'd get a sticker for each chore he did and then money for each sticker. I told him I'd talk to his dad about it after he was in bed. In other words, it wasn't happening.

I do think it's important that he learn that you need to work in order to get money, but I think that it's more important that he understand that there are things you do simply because you are part of a family. I don't want him to expect to be paid for every little thing. He did a nice job of proving my point on Friday. I asked him to do something for me and as he grudgingly headed up the stairs he called out "I'll get a sticker on my chart for this!" Um, no. You do not get a sticker for walking up the stairs to get your little brother's shoes!  There will be no sticker chore chart.

The other reason it just isn't happening is that after nearly six years of living with this kid, I know how he operates. Money's cool this week, but next week when I ask him to pick up his toys in the family room I'm sure I'd get the following response, "no, I don't want to, it's okay if I don't get my allowance". Yeah, but it's not okay for you to not pick up your toys!

He will get an allowance. It will just be a generic "because you help out and do what I ask" type of allowance where nothing is taken away and nothing is added. This will work for us. For us, allowance will just be a way for him to have money so he can learn how to manage it.