Thursday, December 15, 2011

Punch Card Incentives

Chores are not very appealing to me.  So it should be no surprise to me that my children would try to avoid them, as well.  There is always something better to do - even if that "something better" is nothing at all!  So as an added incentive, we like to use punch cards for our children's chores. 

They have certain chores / tasks that we ask them to do daily - mostly on their own.  And we like to reward them for helping out.  I started using punch cards as a tracking system.    Several tasks we have included were: getting dressed, brushing teeth, making beds, picking up toys, taking care of dirty laundry, etc - not big tasks.  But having them do most of this on their own (except my 3 year old), really helps me out! 
But we also included some other chores.  My Little Buddy empties the dishwasher daily, my Curly Girlie straightens our front bench (which tends to be the dumping spot), and my Little Squirt sweeps the kitchen for me daily (I don't have huge expectations here, but he doesn't do too badly using our Swiffer Vac, plus he thinks it's fun!).  They also take turns setting and clearing the table at meal times, taking care of our puppy, helping with laundry, and other odd chores around the house.  So, since these are a combination of simple tasks and larger tasks, we've decided to give a punch for every 3 tasks they complete in a day.  This often gives them 3 to 4 punches a day, which leads to filling a punch card within a week.  We offer $1 for completed punch cards.  Our system works pretty well, most of the time. 


I found a class set of punch cards at the local teacher's store that had 20 spots to punch. I thought this was ideal. And being a class set (30, I think) it lasted us quite awhile.  But I am now on my last punch cards.  Instead of another trip to the teacher's store (where I already spend too much money!), I thought I would try to make up my own set of punch cards. 





With, hopefully, more sets to come!  Let me know if you download these and how you plan to use them.  They could be used for a variety of purposes - schoolwork, caught being helpful, # of books read (or chapters), etc.  Plus, your reward for a completed card doesn't have to be money.  You could make it a trip to the ice cream shop (rather, this time of year a trip for hot cocoa), or a date with Mom or Dad, etc.  I'd love to hear your ideas!  Let me know what you use these punch cards for and what your incentive is. 

Happy Punching!

>      abc button   Classified: Mom

15 comments:

  1. Over from TGIF. I love this idea (and my kids love the hole punch). I've been using a very simple chore chart but we always seem to add a chore here and there, or one goes above and beyond. This would be a good way to handle all that - and the kids could punch their holes out (after permission of course). I love it as a reading/school incentive too. Thanks!

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  2. What a FUN idea! Your right - we all need a little motivation =-) Love the picture of your son standing on the table cleaning it - precious! Thanks for linking up to TGIF! Merry Christmas,
    Beth =-)

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  3. I'm pretty sure by now that I must have your wrong email address because emails to you come back to me every time....here's my most recent email to you...

    Thank you so much for your comment. Its a journey, isnt it. Today has been
    good because Ive been intentional...I asked my mom yesterday why did God
    call me for this...spoken without faith. I am so thankful it is me he
    chose..and thankful for you, a new kindred spirit, to walk alongside and
    encourage! Thank you so much!!!
    Jennifer

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  4. Love this idea. We have been using marbles in a jar, but I think I am over that. I like the punch card system. We are having some major beh. issues right now, too. May use it with beh for now. I think a full punch card may earn him computer time. Or half of a card to start.

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  5. LOVE this. I have used punch cards as incentives in my speech therapy sessions before. We have used 3x5 cards...they get to decorate them and then when they get 10 punches they get a prize. These are really cool! Thanks for sharing at Thrifty Thursday!! Hope you had a fantastic Holiday Season!

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  6. Just found your blog while googling punch cards for kids chores! Love it! Thanks for the great downloadable punch cards. I just printed them off and will try them with my 3 kids starting tomorrow! Thanks so much for sharing your work - I really appreciate!! Meredith

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    1. Thanks, Meredith! I hope the punch cards are working well for you! It's probably about time I worked on some new sets - maybe seasonal! What do you think? I'd also love to hear how you're using them.
      Andrea

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  7. Thanks for this! My daughter is goign to love the puppy/kitty ones. We're using them as incentive to get some of the harder schoolwork/handwriting completed. I plan to have a treasure box that she can choose from with "Activity w/mom" cards, small wrapped toys, and a money option. (She's saving up for something). Thanks again!

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  9. I definitely plan on using your punch cards! I have seen many different ones but yours are so cute! And I like the 20 spaces to punch as apposed to the 12 you typically see. I will be using mine for the same basic purpose although a little different. My kids have a checklist for morning and evening which is in clear sheet protectors. I do this so they can check it off with dry erase marker and wipe it clean. This check-sheet is for their basic chores like making the bed, brushing teeth, hanging up their shower towel, etc. Then on each morning check-sheet they have a "swing chore" spot to check and it's numbered 1 2 3. During the week they have to choose 3 swing chores to perform. Because both my children would choose to pick up a gum wrapper, I have made a list of chores mixed with fun activities (like go outside and do a cartwheel or hug your Dad, reading 5 minutes of their Bible) and wrote them down on Popsicle sticks. They pick 3 on any given day randomly. They can do all 3 in one day if they want. Then they write their chore down and mark off the swing chore box. Now for the punch card. If after their 3 swing chores are completed they help out with ANY other task around the house, they get a punch. After filling the card, they turn it in for a new card and $2. If my kids fill them as fast as yours I may need to do $1! Thanks for the sharing and letting me share.

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  10. Tiffany, that is awesome! I am so glad you like the cards and I love the way you are incorporating them into your routine! Your kids are learning so much by doing such a variety of tasks! Caring for themselves, as well as helping with the family. And I adore the fun tasks you include! We are still using our cards - the kids never tire of seeing how quickly they can fill a card!
    Enjoy!
    Andrea

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  12. I'm super thankful for this! Thank you so much for the free download! I've been trying to figure out what to do for effective incentives and rewards. I'm excited to try this! Have an amazing and fun day!

    Melody

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    1. Thanks, Melody! Stop back after a bit and let us know how you used them and how they're working for you! Enjoy!

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  13. Great idea! I'm planning to use these in my EFL classroom for attendance, behavior, and doing their homework. I teach English in Poland.
    Linda

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