Easy Chore Organization For Kids

Organizing chores for your kids can seem like a daunting task for many reasons. For starters, it may seem faster to just do it yourself and many times the kids are less than excited to participate. Plus, finding a good system is also an obstacle.
After many starts and stops, I decided on a chore card system for the kids and it seems to be working smoothly. I use index cards and an index card case with dividers. I make 4 sections: one for each child's chores, a section for tasks they can work on together and a division with a card for each child with the daily tasks they must complete.
My daughter is 8 and I will write out ten cards with various chores on each card. Each day, she picks out the first two cards and completes the tasks on those cards. Afterwards, they are filed in the back of her section. Her 10 tasks include: swiffer kitchen, vacuum great room, empty her trash, put away folded clothes, dustbuster stairs, dust coffee table, wipe down breakfast table, swiffer bathrooms, dustbuster couches, wipe down bathroom mirrors. I ask her to do 2 each day.

My son is 5 and he has less chores. Each day, he picks one card from his section and files it to the back. His 5 chores consist of: dustbuster great room, wipe down bathroom sink, refill napkin holder, dustbuster kitchen, empty trash can.

The tasks that my daughter must complete every day include: make her bed and pick up clothes and put them in her hamper. My son must put his clothes in the hamper each day. The tasks that they work on together are: putting toys away in their basement play area and cleaning up their rooms together.

I let them put a sticker on the back of the card when they complete the chore and after the accumulation of so many stickers, they can pick a prize. I have liked this system so far because the card case is compact and it isn't taking up much space or wall space to hang a chore chart. In addition, the kids have several age-appropriate chores to complete and it is simple for them to pick the next 1 or 2 cards in their section. I also like them to have jobs that they must learn to work on together. Implementing a chore system can be difficult to get rolling, but I feel once you get in the habit it can be a beneficial aspect of family life for everyone.