No chores/All A's???

See how long it lasts. I am sure he has to do other things, like make his bed, put his dishes away and laundry. I would let it go and when he wants to do something, you could talk about earning responsiblity and independence. You do this thru helping be part of a family and doing your part. Good luck and I really hope it lasts for you. Um what happens when there is no school?? Back to real chores huh?

KarilouMomof2 is a discussion leader for arizonamoms.com living in Tempe. Her daughters are 9 and 6.

Every kid is motivated differently. He may not ever be the type to want to do the housework, but he may end up being so proud of his school work that he makes great strides academically for the rest of his life. If this works, I would stick with it and look for every opportunity to build his self esteem for the things he *is* successful at and also enjoys.

Susan & Neil Hampton have three spectacular children, Alexander, Isabel and David, plus one amazing teenager, Eric. Susan does community outreach for arizonamoms.com.
“In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt.” - Margaret Atwood

He is really working hard and loving that he doesn't have to lift a finger helping. He smiled and got a laugh Saturday when he grabbed his basketball and was about to go outside and I was doing the dishes, He said "how do you like the dishes Mom"? I said I LOVE them if you keep your grades up.. He just smiled and said I will b/c I hate doing my chores... He still gets his allowance btw too..I haven't had to even remind him about hmwk. He just does it. He was bragging to his friend this weekend that b/c of his grades he gets to get paid for not doing his chores.. I don't know about summer. That's a very good question. We were going hold him back this yr and now I don't know if I want to do that.

Elizabeth is a discussion leader for arizonamoms she writes about everything from her needing mommy advice to crazy and silly stuff that happens. She lives in the West Valley with her husband and 3 children, Joshua 12, Brooke 2 and Mason 10 months

I do think it's awesome that he's getting such good grades. That should take some worry off you now that you know he's certainly capable. Congrats!

This advice is probably coming a bit late, but I would have offered to take away his least favorite chore instead of all of them. It's good motivation obviously, but I do think kids learn responsibility through their contributions to the household. I'd stick with this through the end of the school year and then maybe introduce something else for the summer that doesn't have you doing all his chores!

Karina Bland is raising her 9-year-old son in Tempe with a lot of love, humor and support from her friends and family. A longtime journalist covering child welfare and education issues for The Arizona Republic, she blogs about raising good kids.