Teach My Heart: Should You Pay Your Children for Doing Regular Housework?

Should you pay your children for doing regular housework? Merrilee Browne Boyack doesn’t think so. She says, “Chores are things we do because we’re part of a family. No one pays Mom for cooking. No one pays Dad for weeding. These are things we do because our family members all pitch in to do the work that needs to be done for our family and home. To pay the children for everything would give them a very warped sense of reality. Frankly, we do lots of things that no one pays for and the earlier they can learn that, the better” (The Parenting Breakthrough Page 71)

But she does want children to learn about work and managing money. Aside from regular chores the children don’t get paid for, Merrilee has a list of “money chores” that they can earn money doing. Money chores are usually larger chores that require extra effort.

The standards for money chores are higher because the children are getting paid. The Boyack money chores list includes chores like defrosting the freezer, large yard projects, and washing and detailing a car. She says money chores must always be checked by a parent. Money chores can be broken into smaller parts so they aren’t so daunting to the children. Merrilee needed her pantry shelves lined with paper so she offered the chore on a per shelf basis-paying the child for each shelf completed.

Even though children are learning the responsibility of being a good family member there can still be ample opportunities for them to earn and learn to manage money.

Read more advice from Merrilee Browne Boyack in her entertaining and instructive book, The Parenting Breakthrough. Fun and practical, author Merrilee Boyack has readers laughing out loud as well as feeling grateful for her parenting advice. She's a mom who's spent the last 22 years in the real-life work of parenting. “I have four sons, 13, 15, 17 and 22. You know what that means,” she writes. “I'm an absolute expert in raising children 23 and older.” Merrilee offers the “Parenting Breakthrough” for training kids — from toddlers to teens — to be independent. It includes ideas for how to teach kids about money, investing, debt, and the importance of earning their own money; how to help children with emotional and spiritual development; and much more.