There is the “belonging to the team (family)” aspect of chores that reflects pulling your weight and contributing to the team’s purpose, survival, etc.
And then there is the financial life lesson of working hard, doing a good job, and being rewarded for your efforts.
My family’s guideline was that routine household chores are part of family life, so no pay for making beds, dusting, doing laundry, or washing dishes. One of our routine chores as children was to pick up sticks, while Dad pushed the lawnmower on our 3/4 acre property.
As my brother and I neared our teens and were physically capable of doing the heavier yard work, Dad made us an offer. We could take turns on the lawn mowing, and Dad would drive the family 30 miles to for a hamburger and movie weekly during the summer. Or, Dad could hire someone to mow the lawn, relieving all three of us of that chore, but also using the money that could have been spent on a weekly outing. Fast food and movies were a rare treat for us, so we leaped at the chance to do the yard work ourselves.
Years later, while arranging to share the costs of a yard service for our parents, my brother brought up that annual offer from Dad. Looking at his own young children, my brother was trying to figure out how he could teach them about working for what you want as effectively as Dad taught us. My brother could easily afford European vacations for his family, so he had to adapt Dad’s strategy, but his three seem to have learned the lesson.
We grew up with regular chores that were expected and compensation with money was not provided. My first jobs started with a paper route and then babysitting for neighbors. However my parents understood that until we were mature and responsible enough to hold these type jobs outside the home, we wanted to make some money to buy things at a much younger age. They would provide us with opportunities to make a little money with non-routine tasks that they could supervise.
I think it’s a mix of obligations around the home and pay for certain jobs beyond the routine. Helping shovel a large snowfall would qualify for some pay, walking the dog not. When I ran a small business from home I paid the children to stuff, sort and stamp mailings. Also depends on if there is an allowance or not. No allowance may qualify some pay for chores.
Yes and no.
There is the “belonging to the team (family)” aspect of chores that reflects pulling your weight and contributing to the team’s purpose, survival, etc.
And then there is the financial life lesson of working hard, doing a good job, and being rewarded for your efforts.
Both are critical to a child’s upbringing.
My family’s guideline was that routine household chores are part of family life, so no pay for making beds, dusting, doing laundry, or washing dishes. One of our routine chores as children was to pick up sticks, while Dad pushed the lawnmower on our 3/4 acre property.
As my brother and I neared our teens and were physically capable of doing the heavier yard work, Dad made us an offer. We could take turns on the lawn mowing, and Dad would drive the family 30 miles to for a hamburger and movie weekly during the summer. Or, Dad could hire someone to mow the lawn, relieving all three of us of that chore, but also using the money that could have been spent on a weekly outing. Fast food and movies were a rare treat for us, so we leaped at the chance to do the yard work ourselves.
Years later, while arranging to share the costs of a yard service for our parents, my brother brought up that annual offer from Dad. Looking at his own young children, my brother was trying to figure out how he could teach them about working for what you want as effectively as Dad taught us. My brother could easily afford European vacations for his family, so he had to adapt Dad’s strategy, but his three seem to have learned the lesson.
We grew up with regular chores that were expected and compensation with money was not provided. My first jobs started with a paper route and then babysitting for neighbors. However my parents understood that until we were mature and responsible enough to hold these type jobs outside the home, we wanted to make some money to buy things at a much younger age. They would provide us with opportunities to make a little money with non-routine tasks that they could supervise.
I think it’s a mix of obligations around the home and pay for certain jobs beyond the routine. Helping shovel a large snowfall would qualify for some pay, walking the dog not. When I ran a small business from home I paid the children to stuff, sort and stamp mailings. Also depends on if there is an allowance or not. No allowance may qualify some pay for chores.
I think it’s a terrible idea. In a family, we are obligated to each other simply because we are family, not because we get something in exchange.