Who is going to take the garbage out and clean the toilet? The game “Family Bank” will help distribute the household chores. No one will lose

Housework is monotonous and tiring, which is why it is so difficult to find people willing to do it. Apart from that, many chores are not visible at first glance, so it is difficult to judge whether the division in your house is as fair as you think. For example – doing the weekly shopping doesn’t only consist in going to the shop, but also in preparing a list, getting there, coming back, packing the products into bags, unpacking them at home, etc. It is difficult to say that this task is equal to, for example, taking the garbage out, although one can safely say that “I did this, and you did that”.

The game “Family Bank” will not only show you the actual workload of individual family members but will also systematise them and allow for an effective division of tasks in the future. Collect points together and enjoy the rewards.

Remember, the “Family Bank” is a team game. You come up with the rules together to work out the division of responsibilities best suited to your lifestyle.

The proposed game rules are:

5, 10, 15 and the Joker

With all the family members or in a group, divide the housework into three groups: EVERYDAY, BIG, VERY BIG.

Put 15 customary tasks, such as making the bed, setting the table, taking dishes out of the dishwasher, etc, into the EVERYDAY group. These are to be the simplest, least absorbing and regular tasks in your home. Don’t try to make the list long on purpose. If you run out of ideas at some point, you can add them during the game. Each task on the EVERYDAY list scores 1 point.

Put 10 tasks which are performed frequently but not every day and require more commitment, in the BIG group. These can be watering the flowers (if you have a lot of them), washing the bathtub, changing bed linen, hoovering the apartment or doing the laundry. The tasks on this list are worth 2 points.

In the VERY BIG group you should put five chores which are done several times a month which require a lot of work. The list may include, for example, tidying the room, cleaning the bathroom or kitchen, doing weekly shopping for the whole family, washing the car, etc. Activities on this list are worth 3 points.

JOKER – we use this when we have done a very rare task or one that is not on the list. This could be the seasonal change of car tyres or a visit to the vet. The game’s participants decide how many points the task is worth together. 1, 2 or 3 points can be awarded for it.

NOTE: When assigning points to specific duties, consider what rank they have in your home. If it is difficult to find someone willing to unload the dishwasher, for example, even though it seems to be a small activity, put it in the BIG category.

Also, make sure that you all understand the responsibilities that are on the list in the same way. You may find out that for some people cleaning the bathroom means cleaning the bathtub and wiping the mirror, and for others it’s cleaning everything including the joints in the floor.

Recording and counting the score

Points are collected together and there are no individual awards, but they should be recorded in such a way that it is clear who has earned them. For this purpose, you can create individual tables signed with a name or assign each household member a different colour.

The points earned by all the players are calculated weekly (each week is a new pot) and then added up at the end of the month.

NOTE: The individual record, although it does not affect the course of the game, shows the division of responsibilities and the degree to which individual players are burdened. Now that you know exactly what it looks like in your home, you can discuss whether such a division suits you and is fair with your family, and if not, what and how it can be changed. It is best to assign specific duties to family members gradually, week by week.

Just as in the whole game, this point also follows the principle that the division of responsibilities that you strive for has to be adjusted to the individual needs of your family. You are the ones who are meant to feel good with it and you determine what effect you want to achieve in the end. You play until you work out the best solution for you.

Awards

The aim of the game is not only to realise how the burden of household chores in your family is actually distributed, but also to spend time together. If everyone approaches their tasks honestly and ensures their fair distribution, finding a free evening even in the middle of the week will not be a miracle.

The prizes are divided into two categories: WEEKLY and MONTHLY.

WEEKLY AWARD: to be collected after scoring between 50 and 100 points (it all depends on the number of players; the more people participate, the higher you set the bar). The prize should be small, but noticeable and realistic to carry out, e.g. a pizza evening, renting a recently released film or a family bike trip (the quarantine won’t last forever). Choose something that will make everyone happy, be easy to implement and worth waiting for.

MONTHLY AWARD: to be collected after scoring between 200 and 400 points. The reward, for which several people have worked for a whole month, can be, for example, buying a board game, a trip out of town or going to a restaurant together. Just as in the whole game: choose what you enjoy the most.

When should you decide what the reward will be? Do what is comfortable for you. At the beginning you can set the award for the first week and the monthly award and then each subsequent week choose new awards according to your needs and capabilities. You can also make a full list at the beginning of the month.

NOTE: Don’t postpone the awards. It is better to change it than to suspend it. And most importantly, the prize is to be related to a family activity. Things like, for example, children’s toys, are excluded, but a bedtime story book that you’ll be reading together is ok.

Author: Marta Piątkowska

The article was published in „Magazyn Świąteczny” of „Gazeta Wyborcza” from 25-26 April 2020

 

 

You can get the game “Family Bank” as a pdf and print it out – click HERE