Printable Behavior Chart for Kids

Want to encourage your kids to share their toys or mind their Ps and Qs? This frugal (not free) printable behavior chart for kids is an easy way to motivate them! This printable is suitable for a wide range of ages, so go ahead, use it as a toddler behavior chart or for older kids.

An age appropriate behavior chart for kids can be an easy and highly effective way to motivate positive behaviors in your kid. If you aren’t familiar with the concept of good behavior charts, like the one in this article, it’s pretty simple. You write down behaviors that you would like your kid to demonstrate on the behavior chart template and whenever your child engages in those behaviors you add a sticker or mark to a box on the chart. When your child fills up all the boxes on the good behavior chart he or she earns a pre-determined reward.

Benefits of Home and Classroom Behavior Charts

The printable in this post can serve as a classroom behavior chart (in other words, a school behavior chart) or a behavior chart for home. Regardless of where it’s being used, there are multiple benefits to using a child or toddler behavior chart. Here are a few of them:

• Expectations are clear. If you’re using the behavior chart template appropriately (more on how to use it later in this post), the child will know exactly what is expected.
• Feedback is immediate. The child displays a behavior and either earns a sticker or doesn’t. This immediate feedback can help reinforce the behavior and encourage it.
• The focus is on the positive. Home or classroom behavior charts are focused on acknowledging a behavior in a positive way vs. a negative way. According to Study.com, “Focusing on positive behaviors is more effective than focusing on negative behaviors … .”

As you can see, there are several benefits to using a good behavior chart for home or school. However, the biggest benefit is that, when used correctly, age appropriate behavior charts work! 😉

Frugal (Not Free) Printable Behavior Chart for Kids

This behavior chart template is blank, meaning it’s up to you to write in the behaviors you’d like to see as well as the reward that can be earned. On this printable behavior charts for moms and dads (and teachers) there is space to write up to seven different behaviors as well as fields for the child’s name, reward he or she is working toward, and an overall goal.

What specific behaviors and how many you put on this behavior chart for kids will depend on several factors:

• Location – Are you looking for behavior chart ideas for home or school? In other words, certain behaviors may be more appropriate for a school behavior chart versus one you’re using at home.
• Age – How old is the child? The behaviors that are appropriate for a 5 year old behavior chart will be different than those that are appropriate for a 3 year old behavior chart, right?
• Difficulty level – How difficult is each behavior listed to master? If this is a kindergarten behavior chart or a preschool behavior chart and you’re listing seven really difficult (such as abstract) behaviors you’re probably going to see the child struggle. For example, if this were a printable chore chart for kids for a preschooler you wouldn’t expect him or her to clean out the garage, right?

How to Use Kid and Toddler Behavior Charts

Now that you have the printable behavior chart for moms and dads (and of course teachers), let’s talk about how to use it successfully. Whether this is a 5 year old behavior chart, a 3 year old behavior chart, or some other age altogether, here are some tips for using the printable effectively:

• Be consistent. This is especially important if multiple people (such as Mom, Dad, grandparents, and a babysitter or other caregiver) are responsible for monitoring the behavior chart for kids or if this is being used in school, such as a kindergarten behavior chart, with multiple students.
• Be patient. While I’m a big believer in behavior chart ideas for home, they are not a miracle cure for issues. Just creating a behavior chart for kids won’t make all of your problems disappear. You must follow the other tips in this section as well as take the time to go over the behaviors with your kid to make sure he or she understands what is expected. Then, keep at it! Don’t give up.
• Be specific. Don’t write abstract behaviors, like “be good” on the behavior chart—especially if this is supposed to be a behavior chart for young children, such as a preschool behavior chart. The behaviors written on the chart must be very specific, very black and white, so to speak.
• Be age appropriate. As already mentioned, if this were a chore chart you wouldn’t ask a preschooler to clean the garage. Make sure the behaviors your asking your child to display are appropriate for his or her age.

Tip: If your child is too young to read, consider adding visuals to your printable behavior chart for kids. For example, you could put a picture of the reward he or she will receive.

Behavior Chart for Kids Vs. Reward, Homework and Chore Charts

How is a behavior chart for kids different than a reward chart for kids? Great question! Technically they can be one in the same, but generally, frugal or free printable behavior charts track behaviors (for example, no hitting) whereas reward charts track tasks (for example, brushing teeth).

Then, of course, if you’re trying to track school work or assignments you would use a homework chart printable and for household chores, like taking out the garbage, there are free printable chore charts for kids.

You can learn more about various tracking charts and how they may differ from the age appropriate behavior chart in this post by reading:

• 5 Free Printable Chore Charts For Kids
• Use Free Potty Charts for Motivation – Download Free Printable Here

• 2 Free Reward Chart for Kids Printables

• Free Homework Chart Printable

What are some of the behaviors you’d add to your behavior chart?

 

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