6.09.2011

Job Board with Stenciled Quote

With summer here and my kids out of school, it felt like a great time to make a job board.  Hooray for kids helping!  I've been thinking now for several weeks about what I wanted from a job board.

Here's my criteria:
  • Something that my kids can use all by themselves and will work for all of their agescheck
  • Durable, must be able to take some abuse and last for more than one summer. check
  • Adaptable, so that I can easily switch job assignments around. check
  • Fit in with my decor, it will be hanging in my kitchen. check
  • Teach my kids that satisfaction comes from a job well done.  coming along...

The quote is:  Nothing will work unless you do. ~ Maya Angelou


*My kids names are stenciled on the board in the same color as the quote where you see 'name' in the photos.  
Please try to ignore my editing job!


 How to make It
(Finished Size 6" x 17")
 
 

Photo 1:  Cut a board to the length that you need for the amount of hooks you want to use.  This board is a pre-cut 6"x36" high quality pine craft board from Lowes that I cut down to 17" long.   Mark and pre-drill the holes for the hooks.  I drilled 6 holes on the bottom even though I'm only using 4 of them for now.

Photo 2:  Paint the board however you like.  I stained it with dark walnut first and then painted over it and distressed it.

Photo 3:  Tip: If you want to spray paint the hooks, push them into a piece of cardboard first.  (They are painted oil rubbed bronze.)

Photo 4:  I used my Silhouette to cut out a stencil from contact paper.  I read this tip at Shanty 2 Chic and it works like a charm!  Click here for their tutorial. You could also use stamps like Layla at The Lettered Cottage used.

Photo 5:  Stick the contact paper stencil to the board and paint over it.  It doesn't take a lot of paint.  Peel off the stencil when the paint is dry to the touch and then lightly sand over the quote when it's completely dry.

Photo 6:  Spray with a clear acrylic sealer if you'd like and then screw the hooks in.

This is the first time I've stenciled a quote, so I made some mistakes, but even so, I love the look and had so much fun making it!



How It Works 

Each of my kids has their own hook for their jobs for the day.  When they finish the job, they move the card to the hook below their name. 


The jobs hanging from the hook on the left are extra jobs, things they can do for video game, computer, and movie time.  Oh yes, at our house they get to earn it!  However, there is no need to do extra jobs to play outside, make a craft, read, build Legos.......see how this works? ;) 

The cards on the right are jobs that don't need to be done every day, but will be assigned as needed.  There are also some fun cards like 'make a dessert with Mom', 'make a craft', etc. on that hook.  Each week I'll switch the cards and they'll have a different room that they are assigned to clean. 

It only takes a few minutes each night to take a look around the house, decide what needs to be done the next day, and re-hang the cards.  Jobs that are theirs to do, but don't need to be done every day (like vacuuming their bedroom and folding their clothes) are left down on the finished hook on the days that they don't need to be done.


 

My four year old doesn't read yet, so I made picture cards for him.  He can look at the picture and know what he needs to do without me telling him to--I can't tell you how nice this is!  All of the clip art is free from Microsoft.

I used a table in Microsoft Publisher to make the cards, which were printed onto photo paper (card stock will work too) and laminated for durability.  (Update:  Regular printer paper may work the best when laminating the cards.  I've learned that sometimes the lamination seal isn't as durable with thicker papers.)  Click here for a great tip on laminating.  The font is called 'Batik Regular'.  There are also a few cards that are blank that can be written on with a dry erase marker for one-time jobs.  If you don't want to make cards, you could also buy stringed [price] tags at an office supply store and write the jobs on them.

Update:  I thought of as many jobs as I could come up with for tags
 and then typed them into a printable template to share. 


This template can be re-sized.
*Print the template as an 8 x10 or open it in an editing program and then insert a table over it.  
Size it to the template then type in each job or add clip-art and print.

Another plus in using cards is that you can personalize them to each child.  If you have a child that has a hard time remembering what they need to do to get ready for school in the morning, it might help them if you make a card for each task and then put them in order on the hook. 


 
When the jobs are all done, there is a star for the last card to represent a job well done.
 

We've used this job board for a week now, and it's been wonderful!  My four year old gets up in the morning and does his jobs without even being asked (gasp) because he can do it all on his own.  I'm crossing my fingers that it will last!  

*My Mom made a board similar to this one for our family when I was young that we used for years.  I remember checking my tags to see what my jobs were each day and the feeling of relief I had when I moved the last tag to the bottom hook.  It taught me the value of a job well done and I'm so grateful (anyway now, probably not so much back then) to my parents for taking the time to teach me how to work.  


Whew!  That's a lot of information, but I didn't want to leave anything out.
If you have any questions, comments, or tips, I'd love to hear them!



Today's Fabulous Find...Stenciling with Contact Paper
(This was so fun and I'm totally hooked now!)
 
 
 
 
 
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Fireflies and Jellybeans    Funky Junk Interiors    House of Hepworths    I Heart Naptime    Just A Girl    Keeping It Simple
   My Backyard Eden    Serenity Now    Seven Thirty-Three    Sew Can Do    Sew Much Ado    Shanty 2 Chic   Skip To My Lou   
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52 comments:

  1. i love this, janet! and your distressing is awesome:)

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  2. Love this! I definitely need to make one of these! Thanks for sharing.

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  3. What a fabulous idea! I would love to see the chores that you put on the cards! (could you post your list?)
    I am always trying to be more organized on chores...and inevitably I ALWAYS forget one or two (even if just assigning them out)and usually remember them in the middle of the night :)
    I LOVE LOVE LOVE this idea!
    Thank you for sharing!

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  4. I am so DOING this! I'd love for you to come and share this at my link party today. Great job and thanks for the inspiration.

    thirtysixthavenue.com

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  5. Your job chart is very cute! I love it! :)

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  6. In Reply to Michelle: You bet, I'll add our job list to the post. :) It's hard to remember sometimes what chores need to be done, it's usually after the kids have gone to bed that I remember them too! I forgot several jobs when I made the cards, so I've started a list of jobs on my fridge that I add to as I think of them. In a week or so (when I think I may have remembered them all) I'll make up more cards and laminate them.

    I should be able to add the job list to the post sometime today.

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  7. really lovely..I like a chore board as much as the next family but this one is very chic. Kudos for the detailed tutorial.

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  8. Super cute! And your kids actually use it...even better! Love the job chart.

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  9. What a great idea and to make it to 'fit' with your decor -- even better! Pretty enough to be in any magazine! Thanks for posting!

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  10. This is brilliant! Can I put my husband's name on it too? ;)

    I am currently having a blog hop party if you care to come over and link up your blog!

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  11. I just wanted to leave a quick comment to let you all know that I added a link to several pages of printable job tags to the post. I thought of every job I could think of last night, but I'm sure I still left out a bunch of them.

    Heather, I'm sure your husband would be just thrilled to be included on your job board, lol! :)

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  12. What a great idea. I really need to do this!

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  13. So smart and clever. Love it!!!
    following you now.
    ladeedacreations.com

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  14. Looks good - hope the good work continues! Love it!

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  15. LOVE LOVE LOVE!!! I will be making this next week. I have been trying to figure something out and this looks great. I think that I will make morning and afternoon chores so that it will continue to work after school resumes.

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  16. Oh my heavens this is genious! What a fun project idea! Please stop by and join my link party this weekend =) http://designergarden.blogspot.com/2011/06/vip-party-18.html

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  17. In reply to Jess: That's a great idea, thanks for sharing it! Let me know how it goes. :)

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  18. I absolutely love this! I haven't found anything that works with four kids... love. love. love.

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  19. I'm saving this for the future!!! My boys are still little, although I do make them work;)

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  20. This is a great idea! I think I may adapt it to our household of grownups to just give everyone an idea of what needs to be done. Love the quote at the top!!

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  21. Great quote! Need to work on drilling this into their heads!

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  22. I love this! I'm still trying to figure out the best way to do chores around here and I will definitely remember yours! Pinning! :)

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  23. That is fabulous!! I love it.

    I featured it on my TT&J facebook page and pinned it in Pinterest :)

    xoxo
    Jen

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  24. You are a genius. Really. I love this. Definitely on my to-do list for Monday! Thank you!

    (found you from TT&J's Facebook link!)

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  25. These are awesome, thanks!!

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  26. This is such a great idea!!! I love this job board... you are right - perfect for any age!!! I am glad that I followed your link from the Sundae Scoop Link Party, I too am linking up if you'd like to visit.
    Hugs, antonella
    My post: http://quilling.blogspot.com/2011/06/filigree-friday-free-fathers-day-badges.html

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  27. So doing this for my kids! We've tried several job charts, but I like your system the best. thanks, too, for the printable!

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  28. Super cool idea! Just letting you know that I featured your Father's Day Subway Art on my blog. Thanks!
    Allison
    www.room-mom101.blogspot.com

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  29. Janet, as always, you ROCK my world! Love this!!

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  30. @ Janet: Been thinking about how to define which chores are to be done when. I am going to make an AM, PM & Bedtime Card to put in between the chores. They will do their morning stuff and when they get to the PM card they know that they are done til the afternoon. There are certain chores that I don't want done until later in the day such as the playroom cleaned up. I don't want them to say that it is clean @ 9am and then it looks like a tornado hit it when Daddy gets home. LOL

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  31. Very cool! Just wondering if you have a summer subway art up your multi-talented sleeve? My april and may showers mantle needs a re-do and you are my go-to-girl for inspiration!! (not to add pressure or anything...)

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  32. In reply to srapmebaby: I was just looking at my spring subway art yesterday and thinking that it finally feels like summer and I really need to get that changed. :) I have a print ready with a 4th of July theme, and will post the summer one right after that. I'm glad you asked, I'll try to post it soon. :)

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  33. In reply to Jess: I really like the idea of the AM and PM cards! It's a good way to let them know what needs to be done and also keeps things simple. Thanks for passing on your idea, I'm sure there are others who will want to do this as well. :)

    Another idea that I thought of, but didn't do this time around is to color code the cards by running a marker along the bottom of the card. You could have a color for the jobs that are specific for each child, and also color code the jobs that are for each room. Ex. living room jobs-blue, kitchen jobs-yellow I think this would be helpful when I switch the job assignments each week.

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  34. That looks like a home run to me! The quote is perfect! Would love for you to stop by and share it at the Tuesday To Do Party! http://blackberryvine.blogspot.com/2011/06/tuesday-to-do-14-and-13-list-makers.html

    Smiles!
    Jami

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  35. Love this! Totally need one, too. :) I'm following from Fingerprints on the Fridge...would love to have you link this up at my {wow me} wednesday link party going on right now over on my blog. :)

    Ginger
    gingersnapcrafts.blogspot.com

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  36. I don't have any kids, but I still love this! I love your blog!! :) I am your newest follower! I will be keeping an eye on your blog to learn new things. If you would like to take a look at my blog (and maybe be my follower too) that would be wonderful! I'm new to the blogging world but can't wait to contribute to this newfound crafting community!

    Cheers!

    Sarah M.
    www.diyordont.blogspot.com

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  37. I can't wait until I can put my son to work! It will be a awhile he is only 19 months...I would love it if you'd share this at my party WorkShop Wednesday! It would be a nice addition to the party!

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  38. Wow this is a fab idea! I am doing this project this weekend to get these kids in CHECK!! =)
    {Junk in their Trunk}
    junkintheirtrunk.blogspot.com

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  39. I popsted a link to this tutorial today...

    Nancy Ward
    paperFriendly
    http://www.nancywardcrafts.com

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  40. I grew up with a job board too (poster board strip pockets glued on the back of a chalkboard with 3x5 cards, pictures and words). My Mom would mix things up by turning the cards backwards so we didn't know what was next, or sometimes she would mix all the assignments, fan them out like a deck of cards, and let US pick out our chores (we always held our breaths here). Also, we could trade jobs with one-another, as long as they were completed. So, I HATED bathrooms, but my brother could zip through them.

    I've been using a board I made that follows the Accountable Kids model. Check out their book/website for more ideas on how to operate your job/chore board. :D

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  41. I really like this. It looks great, and you don't have to remember to constantly nag them to do their jobs. That's my problem. I either feel like a nag or I forget to have them do their jobs. I'll have to think about how to adapt this to our needs. Thanks for sharing.

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  42. So much more attractive than a ridiculous sticker chart! Thanks for the idea... I think my husband can even be included in this! =)

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  43. Great idea! I'm not very handy, but I'm proud of the two boards I made. I wish I could post a picture..that's how proud I am. And our boys (5 and 3) are very excited about the job boards..they keep coming up with new jobs!

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  44. In reply to Anonymous: I'd call that a success if your boys are adding their own jobs. That's every Mother's dream come true! :)

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  45. Awesome! Awesome! Awesome! I have 5 kiddos and this is fantastic. I have tried so many different ideas for a chore board, but none have lasted... Cork board, Dry Erase Boards, Individual Calendars... This is PERFECT! Thank you for sharing this great idea! I'm now following you.

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  46. This is fantastic! I love everything about it--the quote, your transfer method, the tags with jobs... I'm pinning this so I can remember when my kiddos are a tad bit older (4, 2, 8 mo.). Thanks for sharing!

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  47. SO Nice to not have to reinvent the wheel in order to use your files! THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! And I have cardstock in different colors so I can just print and cut... oh the joy!! Anyone know how to export to a silhouette GSD file and then I'd be even lazier, lol! Meanwhile...relaly, I cannot think you enough. This is EXACTLY what I've been searching for for a couple of months, in exactly the format and exactly the simplicity I need. you are my superhero.

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  48. To Carolina: You're welcome! Wow, I think this is my first time being called a super hero! :) I'm glad you found what you were looking for and hope the job board works well for you.

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  49. Love it! I am in the process of making one today. I just can't figure out how to make my own jobs that match the size and font of yours. I'm not very good at computers and I'm not sure how to import your document so that I can write over it with more jobs. Any suggestions?

    Thanks a ton!

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  50. TO silly6: It will depend on what program you are using. I like to use Microsoft Word or Microsoft Publisher. First right click on the image of the blank template in the post and open it in a new tab. Copy and paste it into Publisher or Word and then click on it. Size it to the size you want and then insert a table over the top of it. You will type the job descriptions in the table. If you don't know how to insert a table in the program you are using, a Google search will usually bring up a tutorial on how to do it. Good luck, I hope it works for you and you have success with the job board! :)

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  51. I just came across this and I LOVE IT! Going to implement this ASAP. Since the boys go back to school full-time next week, I will sure have more time to piece this idea together. I would love to see your list of chores. I couldn't find the additional link to the list you provided previously. Thanks for sharing!

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