An End of Summer

We had a wonderful summer this year. When we weren't busy hiking, swinging, swimming, or playing with friends, we were playing Summer Bingo. I found several variations on this and compiled them to create my own. Each of the girls had a bingo card with fun, helping and educational things to do on it to do. When they did one they received a star sticker to place over the item. At the end of the week we would look at their card and see how many they completed. For every five in a row they received a star ticket which were good for ice cream, movies, computer time and play dates. For every blackout they received $5.00 to spend any way they chose.
L didn't really understand the idea but loved to get stickers to put on her card and it kept her busy. K understood and usually did pretty well. She even got five blackouts this summer, giving her a total of $25.oo. Not bad for a 5 year old; I was very impressed. She used some of the money to buy gardening gloves and to help pay for her school supplies. The rest is in her piggy bank. I think this was a fun thing for the girls and it helped give them something to do so they weren't bored. I am sure we will be using it again next year.

Here is a sample bingo card. I changed them up every couple of weeks.
I like having their pictures on the front so they could easily identify theirs.

K doing her bingo the first week.

L with her card. She loves stickers and was
easily persuaded to do things on her card to get one.

The final blackout of the summer.

Blackout earns 12 tickets and 5 dollars. JACKPOT!

Now that school is starting, we will be going back to our old incentives. K has to make her bed, get dressed and have her hair fixed in a timely manner each morning before heading to breakfast. If she does this, she gets two tickets. Each night when she goes to bed, if she stays in her room and doesn't come out she gets another ticket. She has the potential to earn 3 tickets every day which she can use for movies, educational computer time, or a play date. It helps to keep her focused on getting ready each day and lets her buy something fun to do. As long as I remember to give her the tickets each morning, it works really well. I think this year we will add in an extra ticket if she can sit quietly during scripture reading. I think she is old enough to sit still and pay attention during that time and it will be a good example for her sister.
School starts tomorrow, I am so nervous for her, but she is super excited!