Today I’m going to show you one piece of my Family Command Center that I shared on The CSI Project on Monday. Did you miss it? Check out the whole big beautiful project that has completely simplified my life and my mess. 🙂
My daughter started school a couple weeks ago, and with school comes chores. I tend to give her a break during the summer because there’s so much going on, but now we’re back in business!
When planning her chore chart, I kept in mind a few things:
– She is now 10 1/2 years old, mostly capable of anything I ask her to do.
– She spends every other week at her dad’s house
– I do want her to be responsible, but I don’t want chores to be her first priority –> school work is first, then chores, then free time
Keeping those in mind, let me show you how I made and set up her chore chart.
Stop by The Dollar Tree and pick up 2 cookie tins. Cost: $2.00
Grab a can of Krylon Chalkboard spray paint at Wal-mart. Cost: $5.00
Be sure to use a cardboard box or tarp to avoid overspray. Give it a good coating of spray paint and set aside to dry for about an hour for the first coat.
After about an hour, you will need to apply a second coat. Set aside to dry for 24 hours.
Ok, while you have that 24 hour window of time, let me show you how to create the chore chart.
Using Picmonkey, I created squares with each chore typed in the center and put them all into a Word doc to print. (If you want my chores, just follow me on Facebook and you can get the docs there.)
You’ll notice 2 colors. The purple chores are mandatory – make the bed, feed the dogs, pack your lunch, etc. The blue chores are extra “Fun Money” opportunities – help make dinner, clean the floors, etc. Also in blue, I typed the “Fun Money” amounts to be earned for each extra chore.
So, after you get your chores typed up and printed, cut them apart and slide them through the laminating machine.
***TIP: If you are going to use the extra chores and “Fun Money” amounts –> Before laminating, place one extra chore square back-to-back to the coordinating “Fun Money” amount. Once laminated, it will appear to be a two-sided square: chore on the front, amount earned on the back. Get it?***
After laminating, cut into squares. Grab some adhesive magnet strips. Cost: $4.00
Attach a piece of adhesive magnet strip to each MANDATORY chore.
For the EXTRA “FUN MONEY” chores, grab a stack of clothespins and some cute washi tape. Cost: $0 – on hand.
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To decorate the clothespins, attach a strip of washi tape to each side of the clothespins. Using a rotary cutter, trim the extra washi from around the edges. Once finished, you’ll have a complete set of decorative clothespins.
Using the same adhesive magnet strips, add magnets to one side of each clothespin.
***TIP: Use either a hot glue gun or a few glue dots in addition to the adhesive strip to attach the magnets. It doesn’t stick well to the washi tape once stuck to the chore chart due to the weight of each clothespin.***
Now that your chalkboards are dry, grab your hot glue gun and some ribbon. Cost: $0 – on hand.
Hot glue a ribbon strip to the back of each chalk board for easy hanging.
Using your chalk, draw the weekly chart for the mandatory chores. Cost of chalk: $1.00
Attach each mandatory chore square. I combined Saturday and Sunday and put all of Marley’s weekend chores there.
For the extra “Fun Money” chores, draw a “bank” (that’s the box with the $ in it). Stick the magnetized clothespins on the outside of the bank with the name of each chore facing outward.
As Marley does her extra chores, she will flip the chore over to show her “Fun Money” amount earned and stick it in the “bank” box. She is allowed to do as many as she wants without repeating each month. She will automatically get $4 allowance each week, but has an opportunity to earn additional “Fun Money” with these extra chores.
Total Cost: $12.00 (with spray paint and chalk to spare!)
These chore charts are hung at Marley’s level. I can rearrange her chores as necessary, and keep track of any additional chores she chose to do.
Hopefully this will keep your little helpers in line during the new school year!
Stay tuned for more DIY ideas from the Family Command Center!
4 Responses
As a fellow mom of an only child- I love it! So many times I find an awesome chore thing that won’t work as well for an only. My daughter is 8.5 and this would be perfect! I love the use of the under desk space for the dog too.
Kirsten, the type A organizer in me loves this chore chart! Thanks for letting me feature it in my round-up of 20 DIY Chalkboard Projects. Happy weekend to you!
Warmly,
Lauren
The Thinking Closet
Hey there! I’ve been reading your web site for a while now and finally got the courage to go ahead and give you
a shout out from Humble Tx! Just wanted to mention keep up
the great job!