Accountable Kids

For Christmas we gave Elliot the Accountable Kids program. I have had little luck in finding discipline that works for her. In general, she is very well-behaved, but when she has her moments, she HAS her moments! My neighbor has been using this system and couldn't say enough about how effective it has been with her kids. I had to give it a try! It is said to be a "positive parenting program" and in general, I find positive things to be much more effective with Elliot! I guess most of us operate better if we are treated with kindness and feel important.

The idea behind it is that kids have to earn privileges. Nothing is just given. There are morning chores, day chores, and evening chores. After completing each set of chores, she can earn a ticket. These tickets are used when she wants to do something (t.v. shows, sand box play, play dough, special art projects, etc.) Starting out her chores are very basic. The morning includes: breakfast, vitamins, get dressed, pack snack for school, brush teeth, hair. I could not believe the 1st day when we implemented this and I didn't have to say "GET DRESSED" 25 times. She ran over, flipped her card, and was on to the next chore! It was fantastic (and still is a month later).

Her afternoon chores involve lunch and quiet time. Nothing difficult, but we never had success with quiet time before. Being in the first trimester of pregnancy, I was desperate for some rest! Once again, the 1st day this was successful. She went in her room and stayed for over an hour! No complaining, no coming out, nothing. She is still doing great with this and I am loving it! She does art work, reads books, plays quiet games, etc. I had no idea quiet time could be so easy (and NOT involve the T.V.)

Evening chores are much like morning, but we have added pick up toys and saying her scripture. She gets a new scripture each week at Upward Cheerleading. She would have fought me on saying/repeating something with me before, but since she has to do it for her ticket, it's not an issue. Can I tell you how much it warmed my heart to hear her recite the following to her coach perfectly, "What does the Lord want from us but to do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with God. Micah 6:8" That's pretty good for a just-turned 5 year old :-)

If she earns all her tickets in one day (completing all 3 sets of chores), she gets to put a star on her "DATE" card! 10 stars equals a special date with Mommy or Daddy. It can be something simple like getting to stay up late and play a game, watch movie, or going out to eat or to do something. She loves getting to put a star on her card!!!

She does have the opportunity to earn "Bonus Bucks." These are traded in for money at the end of the week. Right now, checking the mail is one thing she can earn a "buck" for everyday. We've also included practicing piano as money worthy since we can't ever seem to remember to do it! ;-)

This system is also used for our disciple. If she is misbehaving she loses a ticket. That simple. But remember, losing a ticket is equivalent to losing a privilege. She has been down to zero tickets once or twice, and that means NO special privileges. I have been surprised at how well saying "I'm going to take a ticket" works. If I had previously said "you are going to have a time out" she would just start acting insane, fighting me, would be terrible in time out, etc.

One more thing: kids can also earn "Best Behavior" cards. I have had issues for a while now getting Elliot to talk to adults when they speak to her. The way she acts is more than just acting shy, it's slightly rude. I told her that she could earn a special card if I could see her speaking to adults when they spoke with her. I let it go for a few weeks, but she finally decided to do it! My mom was telling me all about her speaking to an adult at church last week, answering their questions and being sweet! It was so exciting to let her get her 1st Best Behavior card. (I'm pretty sure she was excited too!)

I have to give this program a 4.5/5 stars. It really has changed our lives in just a few weeks and has been much more effective than chore charts, time outs, spankings, etc. I guess the only negative I can really think of is not with the system itself, but that the cards are not very durable. I had to borrow a neighbors handy dandy laminating machine and laminate all of them (then get some crazy circle cutter to cut the holes out of all of them). Took a bit of time, but worth it to preserve the cards.

I know it sounds complicated, but it's really simple once you start using it. It also comes with an easy to read book and DVD to help you get started. If you are looking for something for your kiddo's or just want some more info, I'd encourage you to check out the ACCOUNTABLE KIDS WEBSITE HERE. I can't tell you how thankful I am that someone decided to tell me about the program. I can't wait to see how it continues to help our family.

P.S. If you are a fellow blogger, you can get 50% back on your order if you post a blog review! That's a great deal :-)