Assigning chores to your children not only helps you get the housework done faster, but also teaches the youngsters about following directions and responsibility. If you're paying your children to complete their tasks, create a detailed chore checklist that outlines the agreement and gives them the guidelines to complete the activities correctly.
Assign Tasks
If you have more than one child, the Palo Alto Medical Foundation recommends including a column on the chore chart to assign each task to a specific child. The assignments will prevent the children from claiming that they didn't know what duties they were supposed to complete. You may also wish to include a "clause" that prevents the children from trading chores to stop the older kids from taking advantage of the younger ones or to prevent one child from getting loaded down with a majority of the tasks, making them impossible to complete.
Name the Price
Avoid haggling with your children by taking a tip from the University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension---include the exact payment for each chore next to the assignment on the checklist. Have a family meeting before you complete the children's chore assignments so you can discuss the specifics of each task and work with your children to determine a fair rate. Once the amounts are set, stress that prices are non-negotiable so the children won't try to earn more money by rushing to complete the chores faster.
Necessary Materials
If you won't be on-hand when the children are doing their chores, teach them how to complete the tasks when you unveil the chart so they'll know how to clean the toilet correctly or separate the laundry before putting it in the wash, for example. You may also want to list the necessary materials beside each household duty to ensure the children use the proper materials---note that your child must use a disinfecting solution and a sponge to scrub the bathroom tile, for instance, so he won't merely use a paper towel and water.
Define Expectations
Family Education recommends including the different components of each task on the paid chores checklist to ensure the children complete the entire job. Instead of writing the basic task "clean your room," add sub-tasks, such as "put dirty clothes in the hamper," "dust the furniture," "clean up toys," "straighten the desk" and "make the bed." The details will reduce complaints and ensure that the completed jobs meet your expectations.
Set a Deadline
The University of Missouri Extension suggests adding deadlines to the paid chores checklist to teach them how to budget their time and to ensure they complete the tasks in your desired time frame. If the money strongly motivates your children, emphasize that if they don't finish the jobs by the deadline, they will still have to complete them, but will no longer be paid.
