Several people have asked me about our chore and behavior charts, so for fun, I thought I would blog about our "system."  We've used this on and off for the last few years...with some tweaks here and there.  With 4 kiddos and homeschooling and ministry we needed an efficient way to keep our day running, so this is what we developed.  We call it R4Rs which stands for Rewards for Responsibilities.  So when I want to remind them to do chores or be on task I just say..."Are your R4Rs finished?"  If they want to play, or watch a video, or call a friend, I first check, "Are your R4Rs finished?" 

We keep our charts in the hallway. These are the boys'.  The girls' are on the other side.

As you can see, they aren't fancy...but they keep us on track.  I made them out of posterboard and velcro.  We keep the extra pieces in baggies on the wall.

Here is a close up of one of the charts.  (DD was very emphatic that I explain that she did not earn Xs on obedience and attitude, but that I put them there just as a demonstration.)

Each child's chart is tailored to their specific tasks and responsibilities.  For example, dd's chart has "Care for Pinky" (our turtle) while "Feed and water Titan" is on eldest son's chart because he takes care of the dog.

Also, when we started, our youngest couldn't read, so his chart has drawings beside the words so he could do his independently.

The first section is for behavior, and the 2 categories are attitude and obedience...most everything falls into those categories.  We change what pleasant rewards and unpleasant consequences are distributed, but currently if they get 5 xs or less in a week, they receive a reward. 

After behavior on the chart, comes our daily routine and they have to have certain things done by certain times during the day.  Some responsibilities need to happen everyday (brushing teeth) so I wrote those in marker.  Some chores rotate (sweeping, mopping, cleaning bathroom, taking out trash, dusting blinds, etc.) so those are on green posterboard and I can add them to the chart anywhere in the day.  (I usually put them in the afternoon.)

One thing that is different now is that instead of just clearing their place they also each wash their own dishes after every meal.  With no dishwasher, things tend to pile up quickly. So we only keep one set of dishes for every person in the drainer, and they have to wash them in order to eat again. :)

Also, each room (boys' and girls') has a laundry day. When it's their day, I put "Do Laundry" up on the chart. That reminds them to bring me their laundry outside to the washer. I wash and dry, then take it back to their rooms where they sort, fold and put away.

The last row is for smiley's. When they have finished all their responsibilities for the day and have not had Xs for behavior and attitude, they get a smiley. Seven smileys in a week brings celebration and reward because they were responsible.  Yippeee!!!

Our system doesn't always work...sometimes we are gone, and they don't have time to finish...life just happens, and our house looks like a tornado blew through.  But in general this works for us pretty well.