Delores

Cleaning and picking up our belongings is one of the joys of life...I know that my mom was always trying to motivate Noelle and I to be responsible and to look around the house and pick up when we were growing up. Now Lucie and Jack are both to the age where they are wanting to be more helpful and so we wanted to try and encourage them to pick up after themselves and to not just drop their shoes, coats, bags, etc the minute they walk in the door, but to put them away.
In the October issue of Family Fun Magazine there was this idea from a reader. She invented a character named Delores that would randomly come in and inspect their home and then send emails to her reporting on how her children were doing.
We started this idea at our house a few weeks ago. The first week Lucie and Jack were just into telling everyone about Delores and not really into picking anything up. The 2nd week Lucie took the initiative and really started trying to pickup her things and to pickup after Jack as well. Jack saw what Lucie was doing and really started to help as well! It was so nice! They each earned $2 after the 2nd week!
Our "Delores" is still working so well. When we get home they immediately put their stuff away and in the toy room they have been picking up after they are done playing....yeah! It is so nice to have happy helpers!
So, thanks to an idea from a reader of Family Fun Magazine Lucie and Jack are having fun picking up their things around the house!

"3 Delores's Inspection Tips"...
1. Make your expectations clear. Be sure to spell out your standards of tidiness. Is a clear floor enough-or should desktops be organized, too?
2. Use age-appropriate rules and rewards. If your children's ages range widely, set a sliding scale for evaluating and rewarding efforts.
3. Keep the mood light. Don't turn your imaginary inspector into a scary tyrant.

If you would like a copy of the whole article just let me know.