Blog Worthy Moments: New School Year, New Home Organization (Part 2)

It seems that every new school year, I get the desire to organize things for our home a little different. It's my time to reevaluate what we've been using, see what is working and what is not, and get a fresh start! I guess this could be called Part 2 to my post about these type of things last year. I'll try to make this post more concise, but we'll see. Not promising anything.

First, these are the things that HAVE CHANGED from Part 1's Organization post.

1. Token Reward System CHANGED TO Ticket Reward System:
Although we have used the tokens and token tubes for years with success, honestly we don't have as much of a need for the visual motivator for our kids to see the tokens getting higher in their tubes like we did at first. It was taking a lot of extra time to count out the tokens each week and to give extra and take away extra during the day. Perhaps if we hadn't based our system on using so many? But when we didn't have the time to actually give/take away, we just wrote on their boards how many were owed/subtracted and then did it at the end of the week. This did work better than going right away to count out the tokens. But doing the method of actually giving the tokens out may work better if your children are younger or still need the motivation in the visual reminder of the tokens.

So basically we've changed to the same IDEA of tokens, but using printed out tickets to give instead. I printed out the tickets found free here on card stock and cut them out. I also printed Best Bee-havior cards from this same site. I decided to tell them that tickets are worth a lot more than tokens, and that they wouldn't earn as many tickets each day as they did tokens. This makes it easier for me to count out 3 tickets per day - 1 for good morning behavior, 1 for good after school/homework behavior, 1 for evening/bedtime behavior. I put little red dots on one son's tickets and little blue dots on another son's tickets, so they don't get mixed up. (And because I didn't have enough ink in my printer to print them in color. :-) I put the tickets in an envelope with their name on it at the end of each day.

Then the tickets are counted at the end of each week and they can pick a reward from the reward chart based on the number of tickets they have. We are still using the same rewards as before with the token system, except I hand wrote in a few more that our boys came up with to add to the chart. Since the reward chart is already laminated, I can add/remove rewards easily by writing them in with a dry erase marker, or even a permanent one if I don't want it to get smeared. (You can remove permanent marker off easily with nail polish remover and a cotton ball when you need to change it.)

Download a free copy of the Rewards for the Ticket System here.

When we count the tickets up at the end of each week, we are using these Reward Cards to write the number of tickets they've earned for that week, or the reward they've picked out. Then we take up the tickets and reuse them for the next week. That way we don't have a ton to print out or a ton to count up, even if they are saving up for a bigger reward.

The reward cards are also found at this link. http://www.confessionsofahomeschooler.com/blog/2011/01/chore-chart-cards.html This link has a different chore system to use these tickets, and reward cards for, which is all great information too. We just already have a chore system we are using that works for us, but I was able to use the free printables from the free downloads offered at Confessions of a Homeschooler - also lots of other great ideas there too, so check it out!

2. Consequences of taking tokens away CHANGED TO Moving Clip on Consequence Chart
Basically, we were finding that it started to not matter to our kids if we took tokens away for bad behavior, or breaking a family rule. They had no immediate consequence. They still could earn their reward, but it just took them longer. We wanted to find something that hit them more, right then at the time of the misbehavior. Our son who was in 1st Grade last year, really took well to the behavior system his teacher used in class of moving their clip each day to the different levels of consequence. So, we made a similar system for home. Here is our new consequence chart we use. I just wrote it on a piece of card stock with markers for now. (Maybe some day I'll have a neat graphics one . . . but you know, life is busy! . . . )

In this chart, after the warning, then they move to a consequence that basically removes them from an activity they like. Sitting 10 minutes out from time with friends or the family hits them hard. Losing 20 min of their Electronic Game Cards hits them. And going to bed 30 min early REALLY hits them and they don't like it at all! But the good thing with this system is that they feel the immediate pain of the consequence from their misbehavior, but every day they start over new. They start back at the top of the chart again. We can say at the end of the day that maybe they had a bad day and made some bad choices, but tomorrow is a new day to start fresh! So far, we've been using this for maybe about 4-5 months and it's worked really well for us and for them. We know and they know exactly what the consequence is, and we move on after it. They both have only gotten to the end of the chart once, maybe twice. They rarely go past the Sit 10 min on your bed, maybe only once a week. Usually the Warning works. So, the moving the clip is what we use for bad behavior consequences and the tickets are for rewards and good behavior only. We tie them together a little bit, in that at the end of the day if they have not moved past Warning, then they receive 5 extra tickets.

3. Choosing a Chore Stick CHANGED TO Following a Written Chore Chart and Earning Commission
We have gotten so busy, and the boys really know how to do all the chores now, that it's just easier for us to write down what they need to do each week, expect them to do it, check it off, and if they do, they get paid their commission for it. Trying to move them to learning that you don't get paid unless you do the work, it's as simple as that! Probably not as fun as the other way, but hey work is work, right? I am using a chore chart magnet that I ordered a while ago from www.fisher-kids.com I'm not sure that they still sell this exact one, but they may have a newer version now. I like it because I can write on it with dry erase marker and change for whatever schedule we have going on for the week accordingly. I sometimes will write on it with permanent marker so that the boys don't smear it off when they are checking off what they did. (Again you can easily wipe off the permanent marker with nail polish remover on a cotton ball.)

4. Family Rules CHANGED TO REVISED FAMILY RULES
We just revised our previous Family Rules to state everything specifically. Added in some specific week day/school day rules that are different than the weekends. Just trying to put everything in writing so there is no question about what is and what isn't allowed, especially since we have other family members' help with watching kids during the week days.

Download a free copy of our Family Rules and Consequences here.

5. And a new ADDITION of Kid's Week At A Glance Calendar
I ordered these cute personalized calendar cards here at http://shop.fisher-kids.com/Fisherkids-Week-at-a-Glance-Calendar-032107.htm

Again they are laminated, so you can write on them and change them week to week. It just gives our kids a glimpse of what's going on in their weeks easily. Even Alaina has one now! (Although she just likes carrying hers around with her right now. :-)

So, here is a picture of our new chore chart/behavior chart/reward chart boards with all of the new things for the new school year in place! One week of school down, and so far, so good! I'm sure I'll have some changes through the year, and maybe a Part 3 Post for next year, but for now this is working!

Just in case you missed the Organization post from last year, here are some things that have NOT CHANGED since last year, you can read a summary below or more detail in Part 1's Organization post. We are still using these things below:

1. Give, Save, Spend Bags to divide money into. (But a small change is where we keep the bags . . . right now we no longer keep them hanging from their boards with their name. We had an issue earlier in the year with one child stealing from another because they were out in the open and it was a temptation that one gave into. Of course an issue we had to address. But also a learning experience not to keep their money out in the open in real life, where someone could steal it. Now, they are kept in a place where each do not know where the other keeps it - but Mom and Dad do.)

2. Using Checkbook Registers for the Kids when we don't have exact cash available to give them.
Kid's Checkbook Register:
Download your own kid's checkbook register here and read more about where I got the idea from: http://www.theidearoom.net/2009/06/kids-check-book-registers.html

3. Electronic Game Cards