The Value of Participation and Hard Work

I wanted to set up a system for the children to help out around the house where they are able not only to earn money but to learn responsibility for the family that they are a part of.  I also wanted them to be able to have some control over how much they can earn depending on the work they are willing to put in so this is what I came up with.

The children will have certain things that they are responsible for doing daily/weekly.  If they can complete their chores they will be eligible to do additional chores to earn some money.  It won't be an open ended amount because we don't have an open ended amount of money to pay out and I want to be sure that we can pay them on the date we have promised.  I made a reference sheet for the responsibilities and envelops for the children.

After their responsibilities are completed they can choose from several different chores that are each assigned a dollar or a cent value.  My 4 & 5 year olds can choose the black cards, my 15 & 17 year olds can choose from the pink cards.  The cards will be placed in their envelops and paid on Friday. 

The big gals are responsible for keeping track of their own money but the little ones have change jars for their money.  We just had a back yard painting project where they got to personalize their jars!

How do you assign chores and/or allowance in your homes?