As a means of rotating chores, I invented The Wheel of Excitement!
Confession: It is not actually that exciting. Don't tell my kids, they don't know that yet. I said it was exciting, therefore it is! Isn't being the boss great?! Okay, so my big kids are on to me, but they are willing to keep my secret too because they know if the little kids are excited they are more likely to help out and that means less work for everyone else.
On any given Saturday (or in the summer or any non-school day really) when we have a lot of chores that need to get done, we pull out the Wheel of Excitement. So here is how the Wheel of Excitement works:
It's a wheel (was that part obvious from the title?) and it has another wheel attached to it at the center with a brad. On one wheel we write the names of all the kids. On the other wheel we write an alternating list of chores and privileges.
Each person's name lines up with an activity. We set a timer for 20 or 30 minutes, and everyone does their activity until the timer goes off. Then... (here's where it gets really exciting!) we turn the wheel! Everyone who was previously doing a chore rotates to an activity, and everyone who was playing before is assigned a chore. We reset the timer, and we start all over again! Hooray! Doesn't that sound fun?! Say it enough times and even you might start to believe it.
Chores are so fun! I love chores! Whoop! Whoop! Chores are so exciting! I love the Wheel of Excitement! Hooray!
My little kids actually beg for the Wheel of Excitement on weekends. Weird? Awesome? Yes.
Marcia
I have to tell you: I finally made a "Happy Wheel of Fun" for chores and used it last week for the first time. On that day, my 2 oldest had to leave midway through the morning to help with a move and actually were complaining about not getting to finish their jobs, haha! And today already I had 2 of the boys begging to get going before 8am! It's a miracle! Brilliant, brilliant idea.
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