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ChoreHero

Creating chores

Chore creation in ChoreHero uses a 3-step wizard. This page explains what every major option means and when to use it.

Chores tab in Parent Dashboard before opening the chore setup flow

Step 1: Basics

Create chore dialog showing the basics step in Parent Dashboard

Chore Name

What it means:

  • the short title shown in child and parent lists
  • required field
  • up to 30 characters

How to write it:

  • keep it short enough to scan quickly in lists
  • name the visible outcome, not the full instruction set

Examples:

  • “Make bed”
  • “Unload dishwasher”
  • “Take out recycling”

Description

What it means:

  • optional instructions for how the chore should be done
  • up to 150 characters

How to use it:

  • add the details a child may forget without a reminder
  • skip it when the chore name is already clear on its own

Examples:

  • “Put clean clothes in correct drawers”
  • “Use pet-safe cleaner and refill bowl”
  • “Take photo after done if needed”

Step 2: Visual and scoring options

Create chore dialog showing visual and scoring options in Parent Dashboard

Category

What it means:

  • groups chores for organization and reporting
  • options include: Cleaning, Organizing, Pets, Yard, Kitchen, Laundry, Homework, Personal Care, Other

How to use it:

  • keep category naming consistent so trends are easier to understand

Examples:

  • put “wipe counters” under Kitchen
  • put “sort backpack” under Organizing
  • put mixed custom tasks under Other

Icon

What it means:

  • emoji marker shown with the chore
  • can use preset or custom emoji

Examples:

  • 🧽 for cleaning chores
  • 📚 for homework chores
  • 🐶 for pet care chores

Star Value

What it means:

  • stars awarded when the chore is approved/completed
  • allowed range is 0 to 20

How to choose it:

  • assign higher stars for tasks that are harder, longer, or less frequent

Examples:

  • 3 stars for “make bed”
  • 8 stars for “clean bathroom sink and mirror”
  • 15 stars for a large weekly yard task

Chore Difficulty

What it means:

  • visual difficulty marker: Easy, Medium, Hard
  • helps communicate expected effort to children

Examples:

  • Easy for daily small routines
  • Medium for multi-step chores
  • Hard for long or high-focus tasks

Proof Requirement

What it means:

  • whether a child must submit evidence
  • options:
    • None
    • Photo (plan-dependent)
    • Video (5s, plan-dependent)

Plan behavior:

  • photo proof requires an eligible Plus or Pro state
  • video proof requires an eligible Pro state

Examples:

  • None for low-risk chores like making the bed
  • Photo for tasks where visual completion matters (clean counters)
  • Video for short demonstration chores (pet feeding process)

Step 3: Assignment and schedule

Create chore dialog showing assignment and schedule options in Parent Dashboard

Assign to

What it means:

  • chooses who can complete the chore
  • options:
    • a specific hero
    • Up for Grabs

Examples:

  • assign dishes to one hero for consistency
  • use Up for Grabs for shared tasks like “empty trash”
  • use Up for Grabs during busy weeks for flexibility

Up for Grabs: Enable Auto-Assign

What it means:

  • if still unclaimed after a timeout, the chore auto-assigns
  • timeout range is 1 to 72 hours

Examples:

  • set 12 hours for daily chores to avoid end-of-day misses
  • set 24 hours for shared chores in larger families
  • set 48+ hours for low-urgency weekly chores

Frequency

What it means:

  • recurrence rule
  • options: Daily, Weekly, One-time

Examples:

  • Daily for routine chores like bed making
  • Weekly for deeper cleaning
  • One-time for event prep chores

Enable Due Time (daily and one-time)

What it means:

  • adds a deadline time for submission
  • late submissions are still possible but marked late

Examples:

  • 7:30 PM school-night cutoff
  • 5:00 PM for before-dinner tasks
  • 9:00 AM for weekend morning reset chores

Separate Weekend Due Time

What it means:

  • use a different due time on Saturdays and Sundays

Examples:

  • weekday 6:00 PM, weekend 10:00 AM
  • weekday 8:00 PM, weekend 12:00 PM
  • weekday due time only when weekend behavior should match weekdays

Require specific submission day (weekly and one-time)

What it means:

  • enforces a weekly submission rule with two modes:
    • Submit by [day]
    • Submit on [day]

Mode behavior:

  • Submit by: complete anytime up to end of selected day
  • Submit on: submit only on the selected day

Examples:

  • Submit by Fri for homework cleanup
  • Submit on Sun for weekly room reset
  • Submit by Wed for midweek laundry

Reset Weekly Assignment (weekly only)

What it means:

  • resets weekly assignment each new week
  • useful when you want weekly re-claim behavior for shared chores

Examples:

  • reset for rotating shared chores
  • keep off when one hero owns a repeating weekly task

Scheduling/Publishing

What it means:

  • when the chore becomes active
  • options:
    • Activate immediately
    • Activate at next weekly reset

Examples:

  • activate immediately for urgent routine changes
  • activate at next weekly reset to avoid midweek rule confusion
  • batch-create next week chores on Sunday with next-reset activation
  1. start with 3 to 5 chores
  2. keep star values simple at first
  3. only enable proof on chores where it truly helps
  4. use “Activate at next weekly reset” when changing many chores at once