Workboxes Week 1 & 2

Before I start my post I would like to say this:  I did not read the book about workboxes before I started, so I am not using the exact system that people use.  I have looked at blogs and made up my own system as it would work for me.

I decided to try these workboxes to see if they helped to simplify my life.  For school and home.  And it did!  I am so glad that I gave this a try.  I used cereal boxes for each box, instead of using the plastic shoe tubs.  My girlfriend and I decorated the boxes ourselves.

First I sat down and decided how many boxes I would need and how many I would use for both kids or individually.  After I had that figured out, I sat down to decorate.  I have a box for Math, Bible, Science, History, English and one for my daughter.  I still need to make more boxes.  I also took macaroni & cheese boxes and used those for each child to have their own chore box.  

Last week was the first week that we used them.  We started on Monday and finished Friday.  I told the kids how to use them.  They were to go through each box and do the work included by following the lists in each one.  I have made it simpler by using color-coded paper clips to hold their work together for boxes that they have to share.

For example, they share a math box.  So I write a list for each one with their assignments for the whole week on it.  Then I put the worksheets with the list and hold them together with a paper clip. Bubba gets orange and Stinky gets yellow.  Each day, after they do their work, they put those pages on the back of the pile.

Each day when I tell them it's time to get up, they have the option of starting with whatever box they want to.  If it's a box, like history, where they have to wait for me, then they do.  They have all day long to finish their work.  It must be done by 7pm.  They have to at least do that days work, but they can work ahead if they'd like to.  At the end of the week, (Friday night at 7pm) when I check the lists, whatever is not done will be noted and privileges for the weekend will be lessened. 

Last weekend, they had a birthday party to go to, and that worked well for motivation.  If their work wasn't done by Friday night, they couldn't go to the party on Saturday.  This week, there wasn't any plans for the weekend, but they know that TV and Wii privileges will be taken away for the weekend.

This saves me from having to yell and badger them all day long to get their work done. I give them reminders during the day and that is about it.  It also makes them responsible, not me.  I have enough responsibilities to worry about.

Week 2 was this week.  I was hoping that it would not be something that just lasted for a couple of days.  It is still working great.  I have collected 2 more cereal boxes that I need to wrap and decorate.  Tomorrow I will be sitting down and gathering all of the needed supplies and lists for the week and stuffing them into their boxes.

I did borrow the idea of decorating the cereal boxes from another blogger, A Mother's Journal.