I'll Take an A for $100, Alex.

I don't know why I'll pay for teeth and chores but not grades. I just won't.

Rita Arens writes at Surrender Dorothy ( http://surrenderdorothy.typepad.com ) and BlogHer and is the editor of Sleep is for the Weak ( http://tinyurl.com/9pg62e ). She is BlogHer's assignment and syndication editor.

When I was in school some of my classmates got cash rewards when they brought home a good report card.  I often brought this up to my parents since I was a good student.  They always refused and told me that I was making the grades for myself and not for them so the good grades should be reward enough for me.

I still have quite a few years before I have to deal with this subject for my son, but I highly doubt that there will be any cash incentives for good grades.  Washing the dishes, now that is a different story. 

I have three kids, two who don't have to work at school and do extrememly well and one who works like crazy and does um, okayish.

One night we celebrated a great test mark, after weeks of studying by the one who struggles. We celebrated by going out to dinner and letting him pick the place.

Then, his sister complained that she got those kinda marks ALL the time and we never celebrated her success. Yikes! She was right.

So, now we pay whoever of my three makes the honour roll at the end of the school year. The money goes into their bank account for college and we still from time to time celebrate in smaller ways for the one who works harder but doesn't get the results. He doesn't make the honor roll like his siblings do but I still want to encourage him and reward his hard work. I'm hoping this way things are a little more fair.

I think you have to do whatever works for you and your family - it's tough being a parent.

http://www.TiredMama.com ( http://www.tiredmama.com )

I don't pay for grades. I also don't pay for chores. I actually avoid rewards and punishments on general principle. I want my kids to be intrinsically motivated, not to do things for some external and unrelated benefit. Plus I don't really believe that giving a kid money actually changes their approach to schooling. I would highly doubt a kid would go from struggling to succeeding at the prospect of $50. At least, it wouldn't have influenced me as a kid. I got straight As, and never saw a penny for them.

~ Amber

www.strocel.com ( http://www.strocel.com )

but won't do it.  Our grade payment system was unfair; it was based on fluctuations from the previous report card.  We were docked for partial drops (so A to A-) but not rewarded for partial increases (B to B+), so it was stacked in favor of my mother.  That and I typically had good grades compared to my sister, so it was stacked against me.

Of course, my daughter's attending a Waldorf school ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waldorf_school ), so she shouldn't see grades till high school. 

Call me scrooge mcduck, but I didn't pay my kids for good grades because I expected it of them.  I knew they were smart and could do the work and if they didn't, it was because they didn't choose to.  They got an allowance for doing their chores, and grades were a chore just like bedrooms and kitchen duties.  They got disciplined for bad grades, just like when they didn't do their housework or disobeyed.  It worked for us, all three graduated from high school in the top 10% of their class and went on to better things.

I have done this with one of my children, but only at the high school level and only if they were willing to show that they knew that their grades would eventually impact their future and had some plans about what they wanted to do with their lives. 

I felt that it was appropriate to reward my youngest in this way after a terrible 9th grade year.  He made all A's in 10th grade and was on the Honor Roll for all four quarters.  He has severe ADHD and some other learning disabilities, so this was a great accomplishment for him.  I could tell that he was striving for acheivement for himself and his sense of self-worth, not just for the money. 

AllThingsToNoOne ( http://www.getreal64.wordpress.com )

Yeah I'm back and forth on this issue as well.

We get paid to work (usually) so I believe in that. However? I don't pay for chores or work around the house because I feel they should do their part as a part of our family. They WON'T get paid to do their own dishes when they are adults, so paying them now makes little sense to me.

I don't pay for good grades BUT I do reward if I've set a mandate and they meet it. If I tell my daughter that her C- in math BETTER move up by the next reporting period, and she works hard enough to do that, then at the end of the year I'll either buy her something she's wanted, or take her out for a meal. Also, part of my reasoning for not paying for the grades is that my son is in modified learning due to his difficulties, so his grades are not measured in the same way and he really struggles. I don't need him feeling any more inadequate than he already does. 

I also gave the kids the option of getting an allowance (based on their behaviour) after which they would have to save up for the things they would like, or they can continue without and I would continue to buy those things. They chose no allowance. They aren't dumb.

Holly

http://whymomdrinksrum.blogspot.com/ ( http://whymomdrinksrum.blogspot.com/ )

 Conventional motherhood? You bet it includes rum!

Money has taken the place of parenting.  In terms of schooling, money now serves the value of patting the child on the back, making him or her a special dinner for a job well done.  I know when I was a kid, I looked forward to my parents showering me with praise or showing their concern if I was having an issue.  Report cards were a way we connected, but now parents have left this up to the school system and teachers.  Paying for grades only shows that their is a problem in the home.

http://www.thecluelesscrafter.com/

My parents didn't but my grandparents did. It was something like $5/10 dollars each A, less for a B, and so on.  It honestly wasn't much of a motivating force.  I think for them it was a way to be involved, and of course this way we were were always coming over to "show off" our report cards when the time came.