Instead of adding to a swearing jar/bank - I went the other way with it and it has worked really well so far. My daughter, 17, is given a monthly budget amount for expenses - she was swearing quite a bit, so we decided that we would deduct .25 per word from her budget amount the first month and continue up to 1.00 per word in the next months. She had a two week trial before this started on April 1st. In the 2 wks, she did well and we advised she would have lost 1.25 if the rule had been in action. It is now the 15th of April and so far this month she has lost nothing - I'm keeping my fingers crossed on this one!! We also added 2 measly chores to the pot for which she loses 10.00 per wk if she doesn't do them both (one is not sufficient), but this has not worked at all and she has lost the 10.00 each week so far. I'm hoping when payday comes on May 1 - maybe she'll be shocked into reality! Oh well, you win some and you lose some, I guess - but at least I don't have to listen to the foul language anymore.
Diana Forelli 04/14/08
I’ve tried the dollar payments to a piggy bank; I’ve tried timeouts and taking away privileges. The only thing that seems to work is having one day a week (at home only) where they are allowed to swear. They get it all out on Tuesdays, and then, the rest of the week, they are strictly G-rated. Don’t know how that works at school, but it’s a start!
Diana O, Gray, ME 04/16/08
Diana Forelli 04/14/08