5 Tips on How to Use Reward Charts to Motivate Behavior

We've been using reward charts (aka star charts) to help motivate behaviors for DD, who has ADHD.   These tips are for people who are just starting to use behavior charts. 

1)  Don't start too early.  Children vary in the time when they understand the purpose of the reward chart.  Generally, children under the age of 2 do not understand a reward chart at all.  Preschool children may do better with a sticker they can stick anywhere they want as an immediate reward for doing the right thing.

2)  Start with only 2 or 3 behaviors at once.  One behavior should be something they are doing fairly easily already.  One should be something they are working on.  If you have more than 3 behaviors, only one should be something really new.  This allows your child to focus and learn the new behavior as a habit.

3)  Don't expect perfection.  You can expect improvement, but it may be slow or nonexistent depending on how developmentally appropriate the task.  One rule of thumb is:  if the behavior is normal for a child 2 years younger than your child, then you can expect that your child probably will be able to learn it.

4)  Be patient.  It can take a month or more for a new habit to form.  If, after a month, the behavior is still very difficult for your child, consider revisiting it in a few months.  They may not be ready.

5)  Pick your behaviors wisely.  Reward charts are easier to use for behaviors that you want your child to do, rather than behaviors you want your child to stop.   A reward chart is really a reminder for you to notice the positive improvements your child is making.  To use a reward chart for a behavior you want a child to stop, you have to divide the day up into periods and then give a reward for each period which was free from the undesirable behavior.

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