Last Updated May 3rd, 2021
I am going to try tracking some of the kids’ progress here on various incentives and benchmarks we have laid out for them. This is not a complete list – just a select few. Some goals are longer-term in nature than others. Thank you Gracie for the title of this page! I appreciate your help!
Reading
Start Date: We started tracking the books the kids have read in June of 2017 – so this tally is from that date to present.
We pay the kids to read – $5 per chapter book. You can read more about that on our post Reading to Earn. If it is a reference book – or other book that is far above their grade level – we sometimes provide an additional monetary incentive. It’s all part of the bigger incentive system we have implemented – which you can read more about on our post The Dollar Drop. To see a complete list of the books each kid has read and the star rating they assigned to it please click here (Books).
Money – Family Vacation
The kids contribute some of the money they earn back to the Family Fund Jar. This year we all sat down and settled on the target contribution for each kid to be $350 for the 2020 family vacation.
Acts of Kindness
Acts of kindness the kids demonstrated that especially impressed us! List began as of March 1st, 2019.
UPDATE October 1st, 2020 …..um….
UPDATE: June 23rd, 2020 – yeah…. we still need to really work on this….
UPDATE October 30th, 2019: We haven’t been too good about tracking this yet – something for us to work on!
Sports – Soccer
Just fun to incentivize them to try their best out on the soccer field! Sometimes, at the end of the season – I will tell them it is “10 X Day” – which can be very lucrative for them. Usually they just get $1 for the first goal, $2 for the second, $4 for the third, etc. Dominick is the only one that has gotten more than 3 goals in a game. He is, by far, the most prolific scorer of the family. Last year (2018) he had something like 26 goals for season. You can read more about that in my Third Quarter 2018 post.
Update May 3rd, 2021: Kids are just scrimmaging so far. League play may start pretty soon – maybe even this weekend.
UPDATE October 1st, 2020: They have had one soccer practice – but not sure if they will actually get to play any games this year – due to the coronavirus. When will this virus go away???
UPDATE June 23rd, 2020: There was no spring soccer this year – due to the coronavirus. Hopefully they will be able to play in the fall….
UPDATE October 30th, 2019: Soccer has ended for 2019! Totals for the year are as follows:
| Kiddo | Total 2019 Goals |
| Gracie | 5 |
| Dominick | 21 |
| Annie | 7 |
| Sophie | 0 (She is not playing yet!) |
Update July 18th, 2019: The spring soccer season has come to an end! Totals are 5 goals for Gracie, 12 Goals for Dominick & 5 Goals for Annie! Great job kiddos!
Academic – Workbooks
The kids do work in a workbook – as well as attend school. You can read a little about that here in our post entitled Balancing Act. Generally we like them to complete the workbook by August for the year they will be entering in at school. Gracie, Dominick & Annie have all skipped the 4th grade work book – partly because we could not easily obtain them.
****UPDATE June 23rd, 2020: Gracie is finishing up her 6th grade workbook, Dominick has started his 6th grade workbook and Annie is working on her 5th grade workbook. The current plan is for Gracie to jump to an SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test) prep book after she completes her 6th grade workbook. It’s a pretty big jump – but Gracie is excited to give it a shot! We will see how that goes when the time comes – and make any adjustments that may be necessary!
*** UPDATE: As of May 24th 2019 – Gracie is on her 6th grade workbook!*** So although Dominick will be entering 4th grade next fall (Fall 2019) he will most likely have competed the 5th grade workbook before then. Annie is currently in 2nd grade – and still working on her second grade book – so she has a little catching up to do. But she is very smart & determined!!!
***UPDATE: As of March 23rd, 2019 Annie is on her 3rd grade workbook! ***
Somewhat Random Incentives
Below is a table that reflects some of the other – somewhat random incentives the kids have out there for them. We are always revising and tweaking the system! Many of these are LONG-TERM goals – which might take them years to achieve. Regardless – we set out the goals and the incentives – and let them attack them when they feel ready and are so inclined!
Update June 4th, 2020: Dominick & Gracie are both able to solve the Rubik’s cube without instructions! Both are actually able to do it in just slightly over 1 minute!!
Update July 18th, 2019: Dominick & Gracie have memorized the first 50 elements of the Periodic Elements Table in order! Wow! Great job you two!!
| Benchmark / Incentive | Gracie | Dominick | Annie | Sophie |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Memorize 1st 50 Elements | 50!! 7/17/2019 | 50!! 7/17/2019 | ||
| Memorize 2nd 50 Elements | ||||
| Solve Rubik's Cube With Instructions | 5/9/2020 | 5/7/2020 | ||
| Solve Rubik's Cube Without Instructions | 5/9/2020 | 5/19/2020 | ||
| 33 Juggles Without Dropping | ||||
| 100,000 Bing Points | 22,550 | 10,765 | 14,030 | 12,111 |
| Spreadsheet Challenge | ||||
| Start Fire w/ Flint | ||||
| Compass Challenge | ||||
| Write a Book | ||||
| Make Movie | ||||
| Typing - Know All Keys (No Looking) | ||||
| Typing Proficiency | ||||
| Write Blog Article | ||||
| Build Treasure Hunt | ||||
| Mechanical Design (CAD) | ||||
| Camping Challenge | 7/6/2020 | 7/6/2020 | ||
| Build/Program Robot | ||||
| Learn Morse Code | ||||
| Learn Sign Language | ||||
| Knot Tying | ||||
| Memory Challenge |
Summer 2020 Dailies Challenge
We are trying a variant of what we have done in the past to maintain forward progress and some sort of structure during the summer months! I tell the kids they should accomplish each of these items 5 days of the week. I created a shared Google Sheet for them to check off their accomplishments on a daily basis – so we can track their progress. Those demonstrating the most discipline will be rewarded at the end of the summer. And yes – Melani & I have our own lists as well!
| 35 Pushups |
| Do Bing Points |
| Sports Drills (15 min) |
| 6 Workbook Pages |
| 15 Min on a Random Incentive |
| 2 Educational Videos on YouTube |
| 10 Min Cleaning / Helping Mom |
| Walk |
| 30 Min Reading |
| 5 Min Stretching |
| Gift / Get Rid of 1 Item |
| 1 Card / Call to Family Member |
| Practice Storytelling Skills 15 Min |
UPDATE October 1st, 2020: Gracie, by far (other than me), did the best with the daily challenge! Dominick was a distant second place. I was very impressed with Gracie’s discipline and persistence with this challenge. She actually got to pick her reward for winning this – and chose to have a date with mom!
Trash-to-Cash
So I have recently discovered Facebook Marketplace! I set a goal for the kids to raise $5,000 by converting stuff we no longer need or use to cash by selling it on Facebook Marketplace. The money will be used for a cross country trip with stops at Mount Rushmore, The Grand Canyon & Hover Dam among various others. No real time limit on this – as of now – but I might change that in the future.
Sincerely,
