Today we're sharing our updated clipboard system and daily checklist for kids. This FREE printable can help you manage screen time, chores, homework and more! Plus, it's a great way to teach kids a little responsibility and independence.

Jordan Page and kids with clipboards, from Fun Cheap or Free

If you know me, you know by now I'm a HUGE fan of clipboards! We've been sharing our family Clipboard System for several years now—it's a fan favorite and has transformed many of your homes for the better!

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This is what we use to keep us on track for homework, time with friends, screen time, chores, allowance, and more! I've even included a free printable (because I love you that much) so you can print out these bad boys and use them to help keep you on track this school year as well!

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Check out the video online or watch our clipboard system below:

There you have it!

We've updated how we do our clipboards and even added a kid's block schedule into our routine to help our kids get into good habits at a young age. If your kids are ready for it, teach them how to take on a bit more autonomy when helping with chores around the house! If you've still got young ones, chore sticks are a great option that work for us, too!


CLIPBOARD CHECKLIST PRINTABLES

Jordan Page laminating Hutch's Clipboard Checklist, from Fun Cheap or Free

First, let's print them off and get them ready to go! We made you some free, editable printables! GRAB YOUR BLUE CLIPBOARD PRINTABLE HERE or GRAB YOUR PINK CLIPBOARD HERE. But you could certainly make your own! In the past I've just used Pages (Mac program) or Canva has lots of fun options, too. Either way, print it off!

Simply print these sheets on your printer at home as an 8.5×11 standard print. I like to print mine on white cardstock paper for a firmer surface. Keep it in a clear sheet protector or laminate them (this is the laminator I use) so you can use dry erase (or wet erase) markers to cross off the boxes.

Pick up some clipboards, one for each child. I got my clipboards from Target for $3 each. You can also find them on Amazon or any big box store.


SIMPLIFY WITH OUR SUMMER CLIPBOARD CHECKLIST!

Girl holding clipboard checklist, from Fun Cheap or Free

We also have another clipboard checklist in our summer clipboard post that's a little more simplified! We have a version you can laminate and check off daily and erase nightly as well as one that you can check off weekly. So be sure to go CHECK OUT OUR SUMMER CLIPBOARD POST and grab that printable!


HERE'S HOW THE CLIPBOARD WORKS:

Jordan Page with clipboard system, from Fun Cheap or Free

1. CUSTOMIZE FOR EACH KID

Customize the list for each of your children. Include things they need to get done daily—we call these non-negotiables. For my kids, their clipboards include:

  • Make your Bed
  • Clean your Room
  • Brush your Teeth
  • Do your Hair
  • Say your Prayers (working on lifelong habits, here!)
  • Put Laundry Away (explained in my laundry routine)
  • Do Your Zone (each kid is responsible for keeping one zone clean each week)
  • Exercise
  • Chores (we love chore sticks)
  • School
  • Cooking Day

Tailor the list for each child and make sure their clipboard matches the daily responsibilities and duties that are reasonable for them. For younger kids who can’t read, add little clip art pictures so they know what their list says without help!


2. GET ORGANIZED

homework station, from Fun Cheap or Free

We hang our clipboards on the wall in our homework station using these awesome clear wire command hooks.  This way, the kids know exactly where they are at all times. We also organize the printed task list in order of when they need to accomplish the tasks (for the most part). For example, “get dressed,” “make bed,” and “say prayers” need to be done before the kids even come downstairs in the morning. Then as the list goes on, they have until the end of the day to complete the rest of it.

As for what we keep on the clipboard – we typically have TWO clipboards per child. One is for the checklist, and the second clipboard is what we clip homework, assignments, permission slips, and anything else important that the child needs to notice or be responsible for.


3. SET EXPECTATIONS & TIMELINES

Set expectations and time frames for screen time - Tips from Fun Cheap or Free

As mentioned, the expectation in our house is that each child's clipboard needs to be completed by bedtime each day. It gets wiped off and starts over clean each morning. Their clipboard has to be completed before they can:

  • Watch TV
  • Play on a screen
  • Play with friends (including going to a birthday party!)
  • Get allowance
  • Earn extra money
  • When our kids are older, we will use this to track privileges like going out with friends, and even using their cellphones!

Maybe your kids are too busy to do daily clipboards. That's fine! Adapt and make it a WEEK-LONG clipboard that has to be accomplished by Sunday night, and starts over Monday morning. Just set a timeline and stick with it.


4. USE IT FOR ALLOWANCE

woman putting a coin in a piggy bank, from Fun Cheap or Free

If you do an allowance, this clipboard system is a great way to keep up with it! Set an allowance for each child, then set expectations for earning that allowance! Maybe it's “Clipboards must be done 5x completely each week in order to get your allowance.” Or maybe it's “You get $1 each day your clipboard is completed.” However you do it, these clipboards help you keep track of it all!

We actually no longer use our clipboards as a way to earn allowance. The expectation in our family is that the clipboards need to be done as a part of the “norms” of living in our house. Then if they want to earn some extra money, they come to us and we figure out what works best. You can learn all about that in my allowance 101 post!


TEENAGER ADAPTATION

Friends of ours use a similar system, but had to adapt it for their teenagers. Each kid (regardless of age) gets $5/week. They have a clipboard that has a WEEK'S worth of tasks to accomplish (rather than daily), and it has to be done by Saturday night. Most of their teenagers wait (or have to wait, because they are so busy) until Saturday to complete their clipboards. Theirs is an “all or nothing” policy; if the clipboard is done by Saturday night, they get their $5. If not? They get $0. Likewise, once their clipboard is done for the week, they have the opportunity to make extra money by doing extra jobs around the house.

Just adapt the system and make it work for you!


There you go!  Hopefully this helps you keep things a little more manageable this year, and helps you keep track of homework, allowance, and privileges!

Super simple clipboard system from Fun Cheap or Free!

For WAY more time-management and productivity system ideas, check out my new productivity program, Productivity Boot Camp.

Use the code FCFBLOG for 10% off!

Do you use the clipboard system? Share in the comments how YOU do it so we can all learn!

Looking for more great ideas?

Happy tracking, Freebs 🙂

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