The earn-your-screen-time chart
Kids earn screen minutes by reading, doing chores and playing — and color in their jar as it fills. Make it yours below, then print.
Tap any label to make it yours, then print.
Color one critter circle for every 10 minutes you earn.
Cross one out when you spend it.
How I earn screen time
Before screens: my morning routine
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
My week
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minutes earned | |||||||
| Minutes used | |||||||
| Left in my jar |
How to use it
- Set the rates together. Let your kid help pick what earns what — they'll buy in far more. Make reading pay the most.
- Routine first. No screens until the morning boxes are ticked. It stops being a rule you enforce and becomes how the day goes.
- Color as you earn, cross out as you spend. Each circle is 10 minutes. When the jar's empty, screens are done — and everyone already knows it.
- Print a fresh one each week and use the bottom row to see how the week went.
Questions parents ask
How does an earn screen time chart work?
Kids earn minutes of screen time by doing things you value — reading, chores, homework, playing outside — at rates you set. They color in a circle in the jar for every 10 minutes earned and cross one out when they spend it. Screens wait until the morning routine is checked off.
How much screen time should kids earn for reading?
A common starting point is minute-for-minute: 20 minutes of reading earns 20 minutes of screens. Many families make reading pay the most so kids learn it's the best way to earn. Adjust the rates on the chart before you print.
Is this chart really free?
Yes — no sign-up, no email. Personalize it on the page and print as many as you like. If you'd rather not track it on paper, Earnimals does the same thing on a shared family iPad, with live timers and a jar that fills itself.
Rather not do it on paper?
Earnimals is this chart, alive: kids tap their face on the family iPad, check off their routine, start a reading timer, and watch their jar fill with critters. Screen time counts down on its own. Free for 14 days, then $29.99/year for the whole family.