by Belinda Long

Created on: June 30, 2010

There is nothing wrong with rewarding good grades with cash. There are some guidelines you should follow, and mistakes you should avoid, if you choose to do so. The idea of rewarding good grades with cash is to offer incentive to do well, and rewards for working hard to do well. School, at least in my home, is above all other responsibilities for my children. That means that above all else, including chores, school should be given one hundred percent by my children all the time. Does this mean I expect to see all A's on their report cards? No. I expect to see them doing their best and bringing home nothing lower than a C.

I believe a good rule of thumb is to offer a certain amount of cash per A. Why not other grades, like B's? Because an A is as good as it gets! An A shows me that my child is not simply trying to "get by".  Some might argue that not all children are A students and that would be correct. However, if your C student worked hard enough to get an A, why shouldn't that be rewarded? We get rewarded for spending hours at a mindless job when we would much rather be doing other things. Why should children work so hard all the time and receive no reward for it? I want my child to be encouraged to learn. Cash certainly helps!

Another important rule to remember when using cash rewards is not to tease or humiliate a child when he/she does not have the grades needed to earn a reward and praise those grades that deserve it. Making a spectacle when Sally gets cash and Junior doesn't, creates sibling problems and makes the under-achiever feel badly about his grades. The point of a cash reward is to encourage the grades to continue or come up. If your child feels small and stupid for not earning, your cash reward is useless. 

A bonus to offering cash rewards for grades, is that younger children quickly learn how one grade can effect the final grade. Now they are paying attention and they want to know why they got a B when they remember at least 3 perfect scores during the semester. When you remind them about the homework they rushed through so they could go play, and the low grade they got on it, they begin to understand how consistently doing their best - or not- effects them.

So how much cash should you offer? That is entirely up to you. I caution you to heed your budget. Do what you are certain you can afford, so rewards are consistent. I.O.U's do not have the same powerful experience as cold, hard cash. I offer $5.00 per A. That sounds like a lot of money but with five A's it equals only $25.00 and I believe that if my son comes home with five A's, he deserves the money!

Rewarding good grades with cash is only one way to encourage good grades and certainly, it should be coupled with encouraging good study habits and such. But it is a powerful tool for parents! We have only one chance to make sure our children are educated! We have one chance to motivate them enough to make sure they get a great education. I for one, will do whatever I have to do, to motivate my children toward achieving and maintaining the grades they need in order to succeed as an adult in an unforgiving world.

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