Summer Ticket Ideas

I hope you are enjoying your life and family! Summer is a great time to establish the
G.O.L.D. Standard in your home. As soon as school let out for the summer, my
husband and I got together and created a long list of chores that we would like to
see accomplished throughout the summer vacation. We included everyday chores
as well as all of those "extra" things that never seem to get done.

Then we gave a ticket value to each job, giving more tickets to more difficult jobs
and less tickets for easier jobs. We had a family meeting where we introduced the
list to our children and explained the jobs and how many tickets they could earn.
For example, the kids can earn one ticket for unloading the dishwasher and two
tickets for doing the dishes.

In order to encourage our children to get up early (and not stay up late and sleep in)
we reward them with tickets if they get up and exercise before 8:00 a.m. Our three
oldest often get up early and go running around the neighborhood and then get started
on their jobs. My ten year old son is constantly bugging me to have have his job
chart ready so that he can get going on them. He is always anxious to finish so that
he can play with one of his friends.

The kids use up their tickets quickly throughout the day and so they are often checking
the list to see what they can do to earn more tickets. Even our two year old is doing
tickets now! He didn't want to be left out of the fun! When we change his diaper he
picks it up and throws it in the diaper pail outside and then runs back in the house
shouting, "I get a ticket!" Then he takes a ticket from the "bank" and puts it in his
envelope.

Actually, we switched from envelopes to "pockets." The envelopes were getting
pretty ripped up and so my twelve year old daughter cut out pockets from old jeans
and decorated them with everyone's names. She then attached them to the inside
of the closet that is in our kitchen. This way the kids have quick and easy access
to their tickets.

All in all, our summer is running very smoothly! Each of our kids have a job list each
day which includes (among other things) doing the dishes and cleaning up the table,
snack bar, and floor after each meal. The older children also help the younger
children with their jobs such as making their beds, cleaning their rooms, and putting
their laundry away.

It can take a lot of time and patience in order to teach your kids to work, but it is
well worth the effort! For more information on how to establish the G.O.L.D.
Standard in your home, please check out our web-site at http://www.firstratefamily.com

Have a great day!