How to apply gamification to your chores system?
We all this dream about seeing our kids getting up, doing their chores without us asking. What a beautiful dream. I’m not saying all of them don’t do their chores willingly, I’m just saying that kids normally hate doing chores and we need to ask them repeatedly.
I remember my daughters’ faces every time I ask them to wash their dishes or picking their clothes or even doing their beds. It’s a CATASTROPHE!!!!
So as a teacher searching for methods to encourage my students to participate in the classroom, I found the gamification system. That’s when the idea struck into my mind “Why don’t I gamify my kid’s chores?”
This is when the idea came to my head. I searched for it a lot as parenting gamification. I found some ideas, but mostly for business and classrooms. Some parents might know a few things about it but don’t know the actual concept or methods precisely.
I wanted to share with you the exact method and what is gamification and how to apply it as a parent to make our kids do their chores without us asking.
What is gamification?
Gamification is the process of applying the gaming system into a task to improve the competitors’ performance and encourage them in a fun and exciting way.
Now, this is my summary of the books and articles I read about gamification. And this is exactly what I did in my classroom and to my kids.
And here is why it is going to solve the chores hatred problem.
Why do our children hate chores?
- Kids are lazy
We all were lazy, and our kids with all this new media and technology, they are lazier than us.
Asking them to do their chores is going to take them out of the comfort zone and that’s why they hate it.
- They are used to parents doing the hard stuff
When kids see that parents are always doing the hard stuff, they don’t want to do it themselves.
That’s why we were supposed to teach them about chores from the very start. (Yes I’m talking about when they were 18-24 months old)
- It takes part of their precious time
Kids’ precious time is the time when they wanna be lazy, gaming, reading comics, going out…etc.
Asking them to do chores will only take that away from them and that’s why they hate it.
- They know if they complain we’ll do it for them
Let’s be honest, won’t we just get the job done if we heard our kid complaining a lot and nagging about a task or chore, we asked them to do??
That’s why they do it, so we will end up doing it ourselves.
- They aren’t fun
Chores are boring “Even for us let’s be honest” but that’s one of the main reasons kids hate it. If they were fun to do then kids would rush to do them.
How can gamification help with that?
Gamification can turn boring chores into a challenging game where kids need to collect points and get rewards for it.
We all love gaming and challenges so that’s a big thumbs up for our system.
Is gamification applicable?
YES!!! It is and in any field, in life, you can apply it. So, imagine getting your kids rushing and running after collecting points to get a reward, you will save your time and voice.
Check how in details in this post
Ways of using gamification to encourage the kids to do their chores
- Break the big task into smaller tasks
Big tasks are complicated and always boring to start with. Breaking it into smaller ones makes it easier.
Example: Instead of saying “Get your plate and wash it then put it in the cupboard”
Try to break it this way: Taking the plate off the table 1 point – cleaning your place on the table 1 point – putting the plate in the sink 1 point – washing your plate 1 point – drying the plate and putting it in the cupboard 1 point.
So, in this way you can get them to do the work.
- Give each task number of points
As mentioned above, each task needs to have a number of points and you see what fits you best.
Bear in mind, how often would you reward them and how many points are their limits.
- Turn tasks into fair challenges
If you have multiple kids you can set a fair challenge, which means you are considering the differences between them and how often should they get the points.
- Use a chart board
Nothing more challenging other than watching yourself growing and collecting rewards. The children would be more excited about it.
That will get your children motivated and eager to work harder.
- Allow bonuses
For starters start gradually with the children so they start adapting the habit bit by bit.
At the start, they’ll take two routes, either finish their tasks fast or take time thinking whether it’s worth doing or not.
Bonuses would help in both cases. If they are excited and overjoyed, then bonuses would let the flame of excitement stay lit.
If they are overthinking then bonuses can give them a push to do the gamification.
- Set deadlines
Deadlines will hold the children up and eager to finish the chores faster.
You can find more details in this post
Summary
Don’t be sad if your children hate doing their chores, because all the children do.
There are many reasons for children to hate doing their chores and you should excuse them.
Gamification is a system that can be applied in many areas such as work, education, home and with your children.
There are many ways to apply gamification to encourage our children to do their chores smoothly and fast.
Make sure you check out the post that completes this: GAMIFICATION CHORES: WHAT TO/ NOT TO DO?
