I know I haven't posted in a while. Ok, it's been 6 months! Oops. Well, things have finally settled down here at work, which I must remind you is where I do ALL of my blogging from-hehe.
http://www.handipoints.com/
So in case you are wondering about the link I posted, first let me introduce you to my new, reformed children.
Dylan is my oldest and messiest child. He does not clean up after himself unless I ask him about 10 times. And even then it is best if I sit with him until he finishes, otherwise it just won't get done. At all. Ever. But over the last month, he has semi-consistently done the dishes, cleaned up the living/dining room, swept the wood floors, and even picked up his room---well sort of. He picks up 'his part' of the room after only 5 or 6 requests. But hey, it's still an improvement.
Ashley is my middle child and only daughter. She likes to help out with everything but has massive mood swings. When asked to clean her room, she picks everything up and puts it on her bed, on a shelf, in her closet, or against the wall. As long as the middle is clean, she considers it clean. But when you walk into her room, it looks like something exploded and spattered against the walls. But at least she attempts without many requests and sincerely considers it clean. As far as the rest of the house this last month, she has done great in keeping everything picked up and even cleans the bathroom counters and mirrors for me.
Christopher is my youngest and by far the laziest child I've ever encountered. He likes to play in the living room, dining room, hallway, or my bedroom-anywhere except his own room. He will even sit in his room and stretch his arm out into the hallway to play, knowing it's a crime. When it comes time to clean up his mess, he is famous for pawning his toys onto the nearest sibling or insisting the toy belongs to somebody else or just flat out ignores the request. He also likes to bring drinks and food onto the brand new wood floor and make little messes and then whine about needing help when asked to clean it up and bring it back into the kitchen. He stays up later than his older siblings by coming out of his room asking for a drink every 10 minutes and finally snuggling up next to Super Papi, knowing that his daddy won't make him go back to bed anytime soon. But over the last month, well...not much has changed, so let's just apply this link to the older two.
My friend introduced me to Handipoints through her blog. It is a website designed to create task charts and in return for completing a task, points are awarded. Each child gets their own account and can have a variety of the same or different chores than their siblings. There are tons of tasks to add or you can even create your own custom ones. The point is that you get to make up the chart any way you see fit for your family and/or each individual child. You can even make different types of charts. My kids each have three charts.
The first is for chores. I have a variety of daily things such as making their bed, pick up toys, put clothes in hamper, etc. It also has things they do a few times a week. I have my older two rotating days on things outside their bedrooms. When one has to unload the dishwasher, the other gets to load it and it's the opposite the next day. Get it? And for Christopher, well he gets to help clean the living room with one of the older kids and has a few small chores such as dusting and cleaning the hallway.
The second chart is for hygiene and the third is for behavior. My kids hate brushing their teeth and will go a week without doing it if I'm not on their case about it. The same goes with showers. Although they enjoy taking a shower, they always forget. So now that they have a schedule and get points for it, they actually brush their teeth now! And Christopher has things added to his to help motivate him to get himself dressed in the mornings and in his pj's in the evenings. But again, this works on the older two the best. The behavior chart hasn't been looked at too much, but the threat is still there when needed. On this one, they have positive points for good behavior and negative points for bad behavior, which includes whining at the store and throwing tantrums. Hmm, bet you can't guess who those tasks are for?! lol
So the way it all comes together is that each kid can go online and put a check on the tasks they completed. Then I log onto mine and grade what they checked. The closer they get to an A+, the more bonus points they get. But if they check something they didn't do, they lose points for being dishonest. In the end, they get to use their points towards specified goals we all made up. They get to see what goals are available with the points they have as well as the progress of the higher goals, in which case they can choose to save their points until one of those becomes available. I also have goals for allowance. If they wish to use them for money, they have to have 100 points in a week to get $2, or 65 points for $1 for Christopher. Regardless, they get certain privileges according to how many tasks they achieved. Bottom line--the more they clean, the more goals they get.
My husband commented the other day that the house has stayed cleaner recently and more consistently. Aha! And with a big smile, and inner satisfaction, I credited the good progress toward the kids. Oh, and I forgot to tell you that it's all free! You can always upgrade and pay money, but why pay money for something that works so well??!! And that my friends is how it is done in my home! Now I think I might make up a chart for myself to remind me of the things I need to do!
