Should children be paid for doing chores?

[countrygirl12]

No I do not think kids should be paid to do chores.  They live in the house and everyone should help out in keeping the place neat, tidy, and clean.  Kids being paid to pick up their own toys are why kids expect to be paid for ever blessed thing they do.  Or expect a reward for doing the right thing.
For example if you see someone drop money and you tell them expecting them to give you part of the money for telling them they dropped it.  And unfortunately we live in a society where that is what people expect.  They want paid for everything.  Kids need to be taught to pick up after themselves and to help out around the house because it is the right thing to do not because they are going to be paid to do so.

[aflyingmonkey]

Children should definitely be required to do chores, even just the basics like cleaning their room, making their bed... there are no free rides in life, best to learn early in life.

I would base it on a reward system, like a token economy.  For example, everyday they do their chore, they get a star, 7 stars they get a reward, or some such requirement/reward system.   I know a token economy is used in schools, and for basic behavior changes even later in life.  It is a system that encourages achievement in a positive manner, the rewards don't have to be money either. 

[BlackSheepNY]

As a mom, I was never good at delegating with my children and I wasn't sure how I wanted to handle it all.

My husband had a mother who was a servant to her family...so...I also fell into that role; even though, I now feel that was a mistake.

I now believe that children who are required to do chores; just might, develop strong work ethic.   

Do you believe children should be required to do chores, as a way of earning, the roof over their head and the food they eat?

Do you believe children should be motivated to do chores by offering a reward like cash?

Do you believe children should be excused from doing chores because they need to focus on school, homework and social interaction?

What are your thoughts about all this?

Well, I will say that when I was old enough to help around the house, I had chores to do.  I helped clean, vacuum, and keep the house "tidy."  I was NOT "paid" for these chores, nor do I feel that any other kid should be "paid" for their chores.  It's a part of growing up and chores teach you certain things that follow you throughout your lifetime.  If you're the type that would like to reward your child for these chores, I certainly have nothing against you, but I DO feel that "homework" and "school work" is also a part of what a child needs to do in order to learn and grow.  To me, homework and school work are THE MOST important things a kid should be doing.  However, come the weekend, at the very least, that child should be cleaning up his or her own space (their bedroom, for instance).  Once a kid gets a job, I believe they can start "contributing" to the household.  It doesn't have to be much, but a set amount per week or month should be made.  I, too, contributed to my household once I started working and never minded that one bit.  My parents and grandmother did a lot of things for me while I was growing up, and I feel there's nothing wrong in repaying them for that responsibility and kindness.  It's what makes you a true part of your "family unit."

[countrygirl12]

Children should definitely be required to do chores, even just the basics like cleaning their room, making their bed... there are no free rides in life, best to learn early in life.

I would base it on a reward system, like a token economy.  For example, everyday they do their chore, they get a star, 7 stars they get a reward, or some such requirement/reward system.   I know a token economy is used in schools, and for basic behavior changes even later in life.  It is a system that encourages achievement in a positive manner, the rewards don't have to be money either. 

Actually there are.  Lots of people get a free ride.  A free government check, free health insurance, free food, free to next to nothing rent, free cell phones, and then just some spending money.  Not sure how to get it cause I want to sign up!  But yeah, some people, a lot of people get a free ride.

[bretay]

i never paid mine for doing chores..my daughter pays my granddaughters...but the way i saw was they lived in the house and helped make the mess..why am i gonna pay them for cleaning up after themselves...

[vickysue]

When my kids were small doing chores around the house were a given. No questions asked. When they got older and could help with the farming then they were paid wages the same as an adult. Although they did not get much of it as it went into their savings for later. They were also given a couple of  cows to raise and they sold the calves or raised them to have more babies.  It was their job to make sure they were taken care of and we bought the feed and thiswas every year. Well they sold the steers and kept the heifers so they built up a good size herd.

[elvisdo]

I'm in the camp that kids shouldn't be paid money for doing chores. They should be able to help around the household since they are part of the family and live there. Besides, they made the mess in the first place. Why am I paying them for cleaning up after themselves? When they complain about it, I always say. "Okay, you need to pay me for cleaning up."

[bremer51]

We had chores we were expected to do...make your bed, help with dishes, keep your room neat.
We didn't receive compensation for them.  We did get an allowance each week, which was supposedly unrelated.  But deep down, I think we suspected that the allowance might be taken away if we didn't step up to plate and do our chores.

[nannycoe1]

I think all children should have small chores and as they get older they should earn money for larger chores

[aflyingmonkey]

Children should definitely be required to do chores, even just the basics like cleaning their room, making their bed... there are no free rides in life, best to learn early in life.

I would base it on a reward system, like a token economy.  For example, everyday they do their chore, they get a star, 7 stars they get a reward, or some such requirement/reward system.   I know a token economy is used in schools, and for basic behavior changes even later in life.  It is a system that encourages achievement in a positive manner, the rewards don't have to be money either. 

Actually there are.  Lots of people get a free ride.  A free government check, free health insurance, free food, free to next to nothing rent, free cell phones, and then just some spending money.  Not sure how to get it cause I want to sign up!  But yeah, some people, a lot of people get a free ride.

lol, I totally forgot about that, some people do get a free ride...  you're right.   If you don't want your kids to get that kind of a free ride, pay them to do chores,  to show a good work ethic & it does pay to want to work for it. 

[patti4me]

I think children should be expected to help around the house and they should start doing so at a very young age.  I don't think you can wait till they're close to being a teen and then expect them to pick up the habit of keeping their room and their bathrooms straightened up.  If they are never given any chores they grow up lazy and expecting mom to always do for them.  My mom and dad always designated chores for us growing up and all 6 of us have strong work ethics as adults.  One of our daughters has never had her children doing any chores and her teenage boys is the laziest boy I've ever seen.  (still love him though lol)

[jkhanson]

We had chores we were expected to do...make your bed, help with dishes, keep your room neat.
We didn't receive compensation for them.  We did get an allowance each week, which was supposedly unrelated.  But deep down, I think we suspected that the allowance might be taken away if we didn't step up to plate and do our chores.

My childhood was very similar....we had chores we were expected to do.  No payment for doing them....chores were part of our family duties.

We also had more than the daily chores since we lived on a farm.  We had rocks to pick up from the field, thistles to chop out of the pasture, bean fields to walk, laundry to help hang and iron, (Mom did the washing in double Dexter tubs); Saturday morning we cleaned the house.

We didn't get paid other than the satisfaction of working together as a family.
We had a roof over heads, clothes on our backs, and food in our tummies.  We had Love.

[mardukblood2009]

Yes they should be and they will know how to handle money. This is a great place to start for everybody when it comes to money.

[mardukblood2009]

Yes they should be and they will know how to handle money. This is a great place to start for everybody when it comes to money.

[melissajh44]

I think it's excellent incentive for children to get a little money for doing chores. They get into the habit of doing chores too that way, so they aren't messy adults.