What do you do to motivate your teenager to do chores?

Question

Besides yelling & physical violence.. :)

Do you use some type of chore chart, allowance, hourly pay, bribery whatever!

What types of punishments do you hand out when the rules are not followed?

I have two teens who are lazy to put it mildly. It has to be a battle everyday to get chores done. I'm talking washing dishes, their laundry, cleaning rooms, cleaning their bathroom, litterbox and feeding the dogs. Those are the basics. One would rather stay grounded and do nothing than do a few chores, even says so. The other only does them if she is going to lose a privelage or she is getting a reward.

Any suggestions? Be nice.

Answer 1

I have a chore chart. For instance my daughter isn't aloud to make any plans for Friday night if her bedroom isn't clean by Thursday night,and has not done washed the dishes on a Monday night straight after the family has finished eating.my daughter isn't aloud to do any thing until the dishes are done.I also have a list of house chores that she is welcome do to for a set price so that she can earn some extra money for a concert,phone credit or i pod credit.It's some times hard not to give into your child if they haven't done their chores and they want to go out with their friends,but after 2 or 3 times saying no and reminding them of the chore chart on how their are house rules with the chart that they end up doing all the chores and more.I hope that what ever path you decide to take that you find the right one.Take care.

Answer 2

It's hard to work with teens who weren't made to do chores when they were kids.

If they are close to being 16, set up a chart that needs to be filled with checked off cores or else they dont' get to go to driver's ed. After they get a car, you can use that as leverage.

You can also start taking things away. Say they have a list of five chores to do one evening and the don't do any, take away five things of theirs. If you have a daughter, start taking away her cute clothes that she prefers to wear. Take away things that really matter to them but won't harm them like cell phones, even sports practice, or a favorite video game.

Make a system for them to earn their stuff back like- complete all your chores for five days in a row and you get five items back. If you only complete four days worth of chores in a row, then you get nothing back.

Tell them that once they are consistent in completing all their chores then they can start earning an allowence. If you can afford it, you can make it more enticing by telling them that if they save their money, you will match what they keep in a savings account for more than a year.

Tell them that if they complete all their chores for the week they will get an allowence.
You can even throw some competetiveness into it and tell the kids that if one of them completes all of their chores one day, and goes out of their way to do anything the other didn't- they get more money and the other gets less.

Answer 3

What can I say? Teens are TOUGH! With my sister, her oldest was the same as your 'grounded? so what?' kid. His job was laundry. She would make him stay IN the laundry room with a classic book (Dickens, Rudyard Kipling) and he was basically grounded TO the laundry room until it was finished. No grounding to his room...but the laundry room.

As a bonus though...he LOVES to read now.

An allowance isn't a bad idea. My own son got an allowance...a dollar for every year he had been alive, so at 15, he got $15 (until he was old enough to get a real job)... and I broke it down by chore. If he was supposed to take out the trash when it was full, clean the bathroom on Saturday and sweep the living room on Tuesday...and he skipped something, he'd get $10.

Answer 4

I have done this with my children...and it seems to work. My children are 7 and 8...and it may work for your older teens. I have a chore list that must be followed every day. Each chore has a dollar amount with it. If the chore is done...that dollar amount is "deposited" into their jar. They can't have the money until "payday" though. The trick is...if a certain chore is NOT done, that dollar amount that is with that chore is then taken from their jar. They have actually paid ME for the chore I had to do because they didn't. It gets my kids thinking for sure. They don't like having to give up the money they have already worked for. It may be a little elementary for your teens...but it's worth a shot.

Answer 5

Im sorry yet whilst they're childrens, and that they have not been guided to help out with housework, its going to be complicated to get them to do it. in case you have any youthful babies, i might quite propose beginning them early so as that they comprehend that a kin desires all of its contributors to take part to make it run easily. As for those childrens, what have you ever tried? Are the chores existence like? people many times do not choose to do grotesque projects, especailly in the event that they don't comprehend the point. according to danger you should by some potential get them to comprehend this. Examples: If the dishes arent finished frequently, each and anybody will could desire to bathe the dishes they choose to apply till now they are in a position to apply them. If the trash is authorized to overflow, they could desire to handle the scent. If their outfits at the instant are not picked up off the floor and positioned into the laundry room, they gained't be washed. If its available to make the outcomes on the subject rely of the act which you need finished, its alot extra probable that the habit will substitute.

Answer 6

For the one who would rather stay grounded, dont ground him/her. try a different approach. for example..i used to love to stay in my room. when i didnt do chores my mom would take my door off or make me spend "quality time" with the family. lol besides that theres not much else you can do. for the one who wont do chores unless shes rewarded, simply give her an allowance. try around $20 a week or so. If she already gets an allowance, tell her shes not allowed to hang out with friends or leave the house until she does chores. Theres not much you can really do i mean there teens and there gunna do what they want pretty much.

good luck!

Answer 7

I too have been in your shoes. What I did took a couple of weeks but it works. Only thing is you have to stick to it. When my daughter would ask for extra lunch money, I simply began saying no I was saving the money for someone willing to do their share around the house. When she asked for rides to dance class or friends, I said no sorry too busy cleaning the house, with simple statements of "I wish I had the time but with out help it appears I am on my own, just like you". After 9 days she cleaned the house and since has, cleaned her room too, and laundry and picks up after her self. Good luck, just keep trying different methods till you get to one that works.

Answer 8

You know what, if you can handle it, don't do anything, be just as lazy as they are. You said they are teens, how much longer are you going to cater to them, and that is the problem, they aren't lazy, they just know that someone else will do it. Chores in my house started early, sort of, but not just that they were chores, they were responsibilities that everyone in the house had. Since it was just me and those three girls, we had to work together and that is what a family should do, work together. The word here is "we", "we" are in this together. God Bless.

Answer 9

My kids had options. They were paid for the chores, but they knew chores had to be done before other fun activities were allowed. I never yelled, I just said "NO". It took very few times of them not getting to go somewhere with friends, for them to figure out what had to be done.

Answer 10

well im 14 and i get lazy to. but every morning if my bed isn't made and clothes are any where but put away or in a laundry basket or room is just plain messy. my excuse is im too tired, so i go to bed 45 mins earlier and the alarm goes off 10 mins earlier so i have the time to do it.

Also if they dont do what u ask, while there at school take away 1 thing they ues frequently, when they show some respect, thats when they get it back.