Summer Sticker Strategy

Summer break was looking grim.  The kids were sick of school, melting down, arguing and complaining.  My biggest problem was the complaining.  I thought if I could just get that under control we could see brighter days.

So I hatched a plan.

Summer Sticker Chart!!!

Oh, yes.  It's been done before.  Many times.  We've tried a lot of variations on this theme.  Sticker charts are nothing new.  We've tried money clipped to chore cards, chore lists that have reward points written into them, sticker charts, etc.  

We've also tried nothing at all because we are Montessori parents (and school founders) and Montessori teaches parents that properly raised children don't need external rewards.  I've read the book, Punished By Rewards.  I know that stuff too.

But the simple fact is that my kids are motivated by rewards.  We all are.  And I don't think that makes us dysfunctional.  (More on that in another post).

So this is the plan for Summer Sticker 2.0:

Ingredients:  A piece of paper.  A marker.  Stickers.  Prizes.

The children get a sticker every time you ask them to do something and they don't complain.  (Complaining is verbal and non-verbal.  If they do the eye roll, no sticker.)  They don't get stickers for doing good deeds or picking you flowers.  They get grace for that.  

They get a sticker when they obey without complaining.  No matter what it is.  If you ask your daughter to get your purse and she says, "Yes mom," and brings it to you.  STICKER.  If she practices piano without complaining.  STICKER.

When they earn 30 stickers, they can choose a small prize.

Inexpensive treats: Candy, fake dog poop, tickets to see a local baseball team, pop-its, tattoos, chalk, Big League Chew

Or they can continue earning stickers and get a bigger prize when they reach 80 stickers.  Everything is from 5 Below or the Dollar Store.

Slightly more expensive treats: t-shirts, books, scented markers, bigger bags of candy

When stickers are used to buy a prize, I draw a line through them.  Stickers may not be reused or combined with another child.  

We also have bonus prizes.  When a child reaches 150 and 300 TOTAL stickers (used or unused).  He can choose a bonus prize.  Right now we only have one bonus prize for reaching 150.

Oh the hours spent drooling over this prize.  Even I want this one.

If they reach 300 they can choose a gift card for Sweet Frog (their favorite place in the world) or a giant jar of Jelly Bellies.  

Prizes are refreshed from time to time.  New ones are added in.  Old ones may be eaten or used by mom or dad. 

The reason this is working is two fold.  

1. It's very simple.  It doesn't require I have cash.  It doesn't even require me to put the stickers on.  My kids do it.  And they keep each other honest.  

2. The prizes are purchased a head of time and put on display.  It's like the Chuck E Cheese prize counter.  They can pour over the prizes any time they want.  They plan what they're going for, make contingency plans if their prize gets snapped up by someone else, check to see if anything new has been added or taken away.

The prizes are a tangible goal for them.  They KNOW I won't have to run to the bank, make change, find a time to go to the store.  When they reach 30/80/150/300, they know something will be there in the prize vault waiting for them.

We've been doing this for two weeks and I have found this system to be the most fun, the easiest to follow through with, and the most motivating.  

We plan for this to be a temporary system, just for the summer.  It's meant to encourage good habits not a life-long dependency on prizes.  So far, so good.