Responsible Kids

Okay so it's been a while. To make it up to you guys, I decided to post a pretty good one (or at least I'd like to think so). I'm not sure if you guys have ever heard of the Accountable Kids program, but I thought it was an absolutely amazing idea after I researched it. In short terms, your kids have certain chores each day that they earn "tickets" for in which they then cash in for things like TV time, or special activities or things of the like. If you want more detailed information I suggest you check out the link, you may have to watch their video a few times to get all of it because it's pretty complex. Anyway, it inspired me to make my own version of it. 1. Because I could dumb it down a bit & 2. Because I don't like spending money. It took a bit of time, but it was SO worth it! My 3 year old absolutely loves this program, & honestly I do too. Here's what ours looks like.

How Does it Work?

Now our system is a little bit different & a little more simple. Here's a breakdown. The above is Christopher's daily chart. The green squares are things he's expected to do on a daily basis, the yellow squares are his WEEKLY rewards, & the red squares are things that aren't acceptable in our home. The great thing about our version of the system is that chores, rewards, & unacceptable behavior are all readily displayed for the child to see. Also the cards are easy to replace at any time if you want to change the chores, rewards, or bad behaviors. The other component our system has are "bucks" rather than "tickets" that we use to reward good behavior immediately. 

On the left are what are bucks look like, & the right are the replaceable cards for the chart.

Now the bucks are pretty simple. Christopher gets a buck every time he does his chores (the green squares) or displays really good behavior like, listening well, sharing, helping with extra chores etc. Every time he shows behavior we don't like (the red squares) we take a buck away from him. Bucks are used for small things like 30 minutes of TV, listening to his music on the way to school, an extra story at bedtime, & things of that nature. He can save up bucks, or spend them as soon as he gets them, it's up to him. This is great because it shows him that things like TV, & other extras are privileges NOT something we owe him. He needs to be good in order to get good things in return. We've been on the system for over a week now & saw IMMEDIATE results the first day we used it.

Now the last part works with the rest of the system & is simple as well. Each day that we had a good day (determined by how many bucks he earned) we put a pretty stone into his jar before bedtime. If we didn't have a good day, he simply doesn't earn a stone that day. Now these aren't like bucks because they cannot be spent right away, or by his choosing. Once he has earned 5 stones in his jar, they can be spent on a bigger reward (anything pictured in the yellow squares). We chose things like going to the park or the Children's museum, going out for ice cream, or staying the night at grandma's. This is great because it teaches him longer term goals too. Not everything has instant gratification, & sometimes we really have to work for the things we want. 

How Did I Make It?

Our system did take a lot of time to make, but was pretty easy. All of our supplies we already had on hand, or were able to purchase at the dollar store. The chart is made out of baseball card sleeves. I just cut them & taped them together in the back until it was the size I needed it. The cards are just printed pictures I found (& colored) from online since we only had black ink. I just taped them to green, yellow, & red cardstock paper & cut everything to fit the card sleeves.

The bucks are made from foam rectangles I picked up at the dollar store & cut into thirds. Each one has a foam sticker that I placed in the middle of each buck & it made PLENTY. You can use any old jar & stones (or marbles, or beans, or whatever you have around) for the long term reward. Let me know if you have any questions in the comments below, or on our Facebook page!

EDIT:
Here are the printables for the pictures I used in my chart. Keep in mind these are specific for my family & you may need to get creative & add some of your own as well. Color them with your kids, or feel free to leave them as is. P.S. coloring is way more fun! Good luck!

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