Allowance question related to household chores?

Question

We would like to begin giving our boys an allowance this summer. They are 5 1/2 and 7 1/2. They already are responsible for making their beds everyday and keeping their rooms clean, which I feel is just part of living in the house and being part of the family and they shouldn't be paid for that. But "extra" chores that are above and beyond I would consider. My question is, what chores do you think would be appropriate,how often would you give the allowance and how much would you give? Also, would you regulate how they spend it or just let them learn? Thank you in advance for your input.

Answer 1

chores a 7 year old can do every day are

put plates/forks/spoons on table for dinner

help load dishwasher if you have one

put his own socks and underwear where they belong

the 5 year old can

feed and water pets if you have one

wash table before meals

match socks so u can put them away

If they did these chores plus clean room and make beds i would give them each $6 every Saturday.

let them spend it if that is what they want but if there is something special that cost more have them save it for that occasion.

Answer 2

I believe other household chores shouldn't be tied to an allowance, either. They are old enough to be helping out with dishes, meal prep, laundry, yardwork, garbage, etc. - these are the things which are necessary as part of a family, not just having them look after their rooms.

Keep allowance totally separate. Frankly, I think they are too young for allowance - you could just be giving them a bit of spending money here and there for when they want stuff.

We didn't give an allowance til age 11.

Answer 3

Go to our parenting advise group to get more help as far as what i say my kids are 12,9 and 4 i try to give them just enough to encourage them to want to do it own there own which is usually around 5 a week.

Answer 4

I'm a big believer in 10% to church (or charity)... it's important to teach kids to give to others who are less fortunate or need help, 40% savings... they'll appreciate this later, and 50% to spend however they'd like.  

I have always liked the chore list... Chores (setting the table, unloading the dishwasher, sorting  socks, folding laundry, dusting, washing windows, etc.) are listed with a point value (taking out the garbage takes less time and effort than washing dishes).  The kids are responsible for keeping their room clean and a set point value (maybe 5 for the older child and 3 for the younger child) just for being a family member - maybe making their bed all week would count for 1 point - and anything they do beyond that earns them allowance.  That way the kids can choose which chores they'd like to do the most and have a chance to choose to earn more money when they need/want it and not do anything over the top when they are busy with school/activities.  They'll quickly learn the value of hard work.

Answer 5

I'm having a hard time coming up with "extra" chores.  It seems like pretty much all chores around the house are just part of being a member of the family and upkeep on the house.  You could pay them for jobs that are strictly outside of "household chores" that aren't really necessary, like cleaning the mud off of boots, alphabetizing recipe cards, organizing the contents of the fridge, gathering dandelions for the dinner table, stacking cans of food with all their labels facing out, armor-all-ing the car tires...the stuff that most people don't bother doing, the really "extra" things that otherwise wouldn't get done at all.  You might be surprised with what they can find that would be worth a quarter or 50-cent wage.  Walk around the house and look at all the little anal retentive things you mean to do eventually and make a list they can choose from, with the more time consuming things at the bottom and priced higher.  

Otherwise, you're paying them for doing things they should do anyway, things that nobody pays *you* to do and nobody will pay *them* to do when they grow up.  On top of that, you probably don't want to teach them that the only value of hard work is in cold hard cash anyway.  It's corny, sure, but the value should be in completing a task well, helping someone out or finding a new/better way of doing something unpleasant, not just in getting paid.  There's plenty of time for that when they get older and, hey, if you teach them better now, that first fast-food job might not be so miserable...for them *and* their customers : )  

As far as how they spend it, well...it's theirs, isn't it?  And when you're 5 and 7, there's not a whole lot you have total control over.  You might help them pick out something really expensive to work towards, though.  We let our 6-year-old decide for herself where all of her money goes.  Somewhere around age 3 she decided she wanted a horse and nearly all of the money she's ever received has gone into multiple piggy banks by her choice without prompting from us (somewhere around $300 at last counting).  Whenever she sees something she wants we just ask her to stop and consider whether it's worth spending her "horse money" on.  Usually the answer is no.   Because she has something more valuable to gauge it against, the little crappy gumball machine toys almost always get passed by.  She does splurge every now and then, though, when the adjustable pink plastic gemstone ring just won't stop calling her name : )

Answer 6

Growing up, my parents provided me with an allowance for "extra" chores. Early on it was $5 a week, and as I grew older it grew to $10 and then $15 a week. In the beginning the chores aligned with household work (i.e. cleaning the bathroom, watering plants, etc) and then eventually expanded to yardwork such as mowing the lawn or pulling weeds. The money could be spent however I chose, which I believe is valuable as it teaches you to not only save your money but understand that $5 spent on candy isn't very sustainable in the long run. I would strongly encourage you implementing a similar situation with your children.

Answer 7

In our family chores and allowances were kept as completely separate things.

Allowances were a way of learning how to spend money the right way.

Chores were something we did because we had to do them and we would be skinned alive by our parents if we did not (metaphorically speaking, of coarse).

Answer 8

taking out garbage

drying dishes/clearing table

putting their laundry away

bringing their laundry baskets to you

recycling

as far as pay, not sure.  i would let them spend it.

Answer 9

I would have a list of things that need to be done every day. Every day they are done they get $1. I wouldn't control how it is spent, but I would have them open a bank account. They have savings accounts for kids that they can't touch until they are 18. Every Friday take them to the bank, show them how to fill out a deposit slip and have them put in at least 1/2 of anything they earned that week. The rest they can do what ever they want with. Make sure they know its for when they are adults. This way they learned to save and spend.

Answer 10

$10 per week each. $5 to spend and $5 to put into a bank account. Check at some credit unions. Some have special interest bearing accounts for kids.

Answer 11

Give them first a piggy bank. Let them add to it every week of say 25% of their whole allowance. It will teach them about saving money. Let them help set and clear the tables where you eat. Help you fold clothes out of the dryer. Even help rake up leaves in piles in the yard, etc. Pay them extra, though for extra work. Let them spend their money on what they enjoy like toys, candies(not too much),  and things like comic books.