Configuration: Chores Advanced

Chore Advanced Features

Prerequisites: Familiarity with Chore Configuration Guide

Note

This guide is for complex household workflows: per-kid schedules, multi-times-per-day chores, strict claim windows, and turn-based rotation.

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Who This Is For

Use this page if you need one or more of these:

• Different schedules per Kid for the same Chore
• More than one completion window per day
• Recurrence based on completion timing
• Strict “not yet claimable” windows
• Rotation with fairness and optional steal behavior

If you just need standard daily/weekly chores, use Chore Configuration Guide.

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How To Read This Page

Advanced configuration is easiest when done in this order:

1. Build the advanced schedule
2. Configure claim timing and reminders
3. Configure approval boundary behavior
4. Apply rotation and overdue strategy

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1) Advanced Scheduling

Daily Multi (multiple completions per day)

Use Daily (Multiple times per day) when one Chore should appear at multiple time slots.

• Time format: HH:MM|HH:MM|HH:MM
• Each slot is a separate completion opportunity
• Use realistic slot counts to avoid overload

Important

Daily Multi has compatibility validation. If a combination is not allowed, the flow blocks save with a clear error.

Where Daily Multi times are entered

• Shared modes or single-kid independent: one shared daily_multi_times field in helper step
• Independent with multiple Kids: per-kid daily times fields in the per-kid helper

Custom interval recurrence

Use Custom for interval-based recurrence from schedule boundaries.

Examples:

• Every 3 days
• Every 2 weeks
• Every 6 hours (short-term workflows)

Custom from completion

Use Custom from completion when next due time should be calculated from when the Chore was actually completed.

Best for maintenance-style chores where interval-after-completion matters.

This is different from approval reset timing. Treat them as two independent controls:

• Approval reset type (including Upon completion) controls when approved returns to pending.
• Frequency (Custom interval vs Custom from completion) controls what timestamp recurrence uses for the next due date.

Clear behavior examples:

• Upon completion + Custom interval: resets to pending immediately, then next due date still follows normal due-date-based recurrence scheduling.
• Upon completion + Custom from completion: resets to pending immediately, and next due date is anchored to completion timestamp.

You can use either behavior alone, or combine both when needed.

Tip

Hour-based recurrence is powerful but can create alert fatigue. Keep it intentional.

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2) Per-Kid Helper (Independent + Multiple Kids)

When completion criteria is Independent and multiple Kids are assigned, the flow can open per-kid helper fields.

Per-kid fields may include:

• Applicable days per Kid
• Daily Multi times per Kid
• Due date per Kid
• Clear due date per Kid

Use this to run one shared Chore definition with individualized schedules.

Common use cases

• Split-week routines (Kid A early week, Kid B late week)
• Different school-night/weekend schedules
• Different Daily Multi slot times by Kid age/routine

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3) Claim Timing, Locking, and Reminders

Due window offset

chore_due_window_offset controls when a Chore transitions into the due window before due date.

Format accepts duration strings like:

• 30 (minutes)
• 1d 6h 30m
• 0 (disable)

If disabled (0), the chore stays in normal pending-style availability until other timing rules apply. Due window is an optional refinement layer, not a requirement.

Lock claim until due window opens

chore_claim_lock_until_window prevents kids from claiming before the due window starts.

When this lock is active, a Kid can see Waiting (Due Window Not Open).

4) Approval Cycle Controls

Think in three lanes:

• Trigger lane: approval_reset_type
• Pending-claim lane: approval_reset_pending_claim_action
• Overdue lane: overdue_handling_type

Approval reset type

Controls when the approval boundary fires:

• Once per day
• Multiple times per day
• At due date (single or multi)
• Upon completion
• Manual reset only

In plain terms: after a chore is approved, this setting controls when it becomes pending/claimable again.

Important: Upon completion changes reset timing only. It does not change recurrence anchor math by itself.

Pending claim action

Controls what happens to unapproved claims at the boundary:

• hold_pending
• clear_pending
• auto_approve_pending

Auto approve

auto_approve can reduce parent overhead for trusted chores.

Use carefully when accountability or review is still important.

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5) Visibility and Notification Controls

These controls are part of advanced tuning and are easy to miss if you only use defaults.

Chore notifications (chore_notifications)

Choose which workflow moments generate notifications. Available notification moments include:

• claim
• approval
• disapproval
• overdue
• due-window start
• due reminder

Use this to reduce noise while preserving high-value alerts.

Due reminder offset (chore_due_reminder_offset)

Controls when due reminder notifications fire before due date.

• Uses duration format like 30m, 1h 20m, 1d 2h
• Works with notification selections for due reminders

Show on calendar (show_on_calendar)

Controls whether the Chore appears in calendar-based views.

• Enable for schedule-centric household planning
• Disable for low-signal chores you do not want in calendar surfaces

Labels (chore_labels)

Labels support organization, grouping, and dashboard filtering.

Use labels when they improve sorting or filtering. Keep label taxonomy simple and consistent.

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6) Rotation and Overdue Strategies

Rotation modes

Rotation Simple

• Turn-holder only before overdue unlocks
• Strict order advancement

Rotation Smart

• Turn-holder only before overdue unlocks
• Fairness-weighted advancement

Fairness selection uses completion history and recency so turns do not stay unbalanced.

Rotation lock states

Kids can encounter these valid blocked states:

• Not My Turn (Rotation)
• Missed (Locked)

Allow Steal (rotation-only overdue strategy)

Allow Steal Until Approval Reset (Rotation Only) changes claim behavior after due time.

• Before due: only turn-holder claims
• After due: other assigned Kids can claim (steal window)
• If nobody completes before boundary: overdue policy resolves and turn advances

Warning

Allow Steal is valid only when all are true:

• Completion criteria is rotation_simple or rotation_smart
• Approval reset type is once-per-day style
• Due date is set

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High-Value Patterns

Pattern A: Split-week independent household

• Completion: independent
• Per-kid applicable days
• Optional per-kid due dates

Pattern B: Meal-based recurring chore

• Frequency: Daily Multi
• Times: morning/lunch/evening slots
• Lower points per slot for balance

Pattern C: Fair sibling turn-taking

• Completion: rotation simple or rotation smart
• Due window lock enabled
• Optional allow-steal for late-window flexibility

Pattern D: Low-noise, high-signal notifications

• Configure chore_notifications for only overdue + due reminder + disapproval
• Keep claim/approval notifications off for routine chores
• Leave calendar visibility on only for chores that are schedule-critical

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Troubleshooting

Per-kid helper did not appear

• Confirm completion criteria is independent
• Confirm multiple Kids are assigned

Daily Multi helper did not appear

• Confirm frequency is Daily Multi
• Confirm required schedule fields are set

Save blocked by compatibility error

• Read validation message and adjust the incompatible pair
• Common source: Daily Multi + incompatible approval-reset selection
• Common source: Allow Steal + non-rotation completion mode

Kid cannot claim

• Check state/lock reason on the chore status entity
• Common lock reasons: waiting, not_my_turn, missed
• Verify due window lock and rotation settings for that Chore