How to set up a family chore chart that takes turns, with stars and rewards
Most chore charts fail on fairness: who fed the dog last week, why does she always get the easy job. Fridge Door's chores take turns by themselves, a week at a time, with extra jobs up for grabs and stars for every one.
Step 1: decide the jobs
Split them into three kinds:
- Everyone's own: make your bed, put away your laundry. Each child ticks their own.
- Taking turns: one job, one child a week, like feeding the dog, setting the table or taking out the recycling.
- Up for grabs: extra jobs for anyone who wants the stars, like washing the car or raking the leaves.
Step 2: add them
Open Tasks, tap Set up, then + and Add chore. Give each a name, a picture and its stars, and how often it repeats.
- For everyone's own, tap every child it's for under For.
- For taking turns, tap the children who share it and turn on Take turns weekly. One child a week, in family order, starting the week you choose.
- For up for grabs, tap no one. Whoever does it first taps their face and gets the stars.
Chores that take turns has every option.
Step 3: rewards
Add rewards the kids save their stars for: small ones they can earn in a few days, and bigger ones for later. When they have enough, they tap the reward and a parent confirms with the PIN. See rewards and stars.
Step 4: put it where they'll see it
On the kitchen screen, each child has a card in their colour with today's chores and routines, and the up-for-grabs jobs sit in their own panel. See pairing a kitchen screen.
Keeping it fair
- Price jobs by effort. A two-minute job is one star; cleaning the bathroom is more.
- Adults too. Put a parent on the chart; kids notice.
- Check, then praise. Stars land when a job is ticked; untick anything that wasn't really done, and say well done for what was.
Questions
Can turns rotate daily instead of weekly?
Turns go a week at a time, which keeps it simple to remember. For a daily job everyone does, make it everyone's own instead.
What if a child is away for a week?
A parent can tick their turn off for them, and the turn passes on as usual the next week.
Can the kids add their own chores?
No. Setting up chores and rewards is for parents, behind the parent PIN, so the kitchen screen is safe to leave on.
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