- Mom, should I empty the trash can?

_ No, it's my turn, you did it yesterday!

- Not fair, he always get to empty the trash.

 

I can hardly believe what I hear, my kids are fighting to do chores before I even get a chance to ask them to do it.

Sounds surreal, doesn't it?

Don't be fooled they are not doing it out of the kindness of their hearts, they are doing it for hearts. The heart is the currency used in our house to reward good deeds, I know ,they should be helping just because they are part of the household and everyone needs to participate, as nice and fair as it sounds, it just does not work, kids are motivated by rewards. It does not have to be big. Like in the real life reward programs (air miles for example)  hearts are worth a lot less than dollars, the actual exchange rate in our house is 20 hearts for 5 dollars. and the rewards usually top at 5 hearts maximum per day, they are not given everytime they do something, not even everyday, there is not a set price for each chore, sometimes they do it for free, but they never know when the reward will be big, just so they take on the habit of being helpful. I wait until their cards are full and then they can decide if they want to spend their money or save for later, we encourage them to save to purchase a big item, and we never give them credit for future earning, as I want them to learn the true value of saving.

The cards are displayed on the fridge as a permanent reminder of what is at stake.