How to Use Stars Buddy

A complete guide to motivating your children and building positive habits

Quick Start Guide

Getting started takes just 3 minutes! Follow these simple steps:

  1. Create profiles for each child
  2. Add tasks they need to complete
  3. Set up rewards they can earn
  4. Start tracking their progress daily

Setting Up Child Profiles

Creating a Profile

Click the “+ Add Child” button to create your first child profile. Each profile is personalized with:

  • Name: Enter your child’s name
  • Avatar: Choose from cute animal characters (Cat, Dog, Fox, or Bear)
  • Profile Image: The avatar changes based on their weekly performance

Pro Tip: Let your child pick their own animal avatar! This increases their emotional connection to the chart.

Switching Between Children

Managing multiple children is easy. Use the dropdown menu at the top to switch between child profiles. Each child has their own:

  • Task list and completion history
  • Reward goals and progress
  • Weekly statistics and performance
  • Personal motivation board

Adding Tasks

Creating Tasks

Click “+ Add Task” to create a new task. Each task includes:

Task Name
Be specific! Instead of “Clean room,” try “Put toys in toy box”

Description (Optional)
Add details about what needs to be done. This helps avoid confusion.

Days of the Week
Select which days this task should be completed

Recurrence
Choose “One-time” for special tasks or “Recurring” for daily habits

Task Examples

Daily Tasks

  • Brush teeth (morning & night)
  • Make bed
  • Complete homework
  • Feed the pet

Weekly Tasks

  • Clean bedroom (Saturdays)
  • Take out trash (Thursdays)
  • Water plants (Sundays)
  • Practice instrument (3x/week)

Setting Up Rewards

Creating Rewards

Rewards are what motivate children to complete their tasks. Click “+ Add Reward” to set one up:

Reward Name

Something your child is excited about: “30 minutes tablet time” or “Ice cream trip”

Description (Optional)

Add details like when or where they can enjoy this reward

Target Stars

How many stars needed to earn this reward (typically 5-30 stars)

Reward Period

Daily (resets each day) or Weekly (resets each Monday)

Joint Reward (Optional)

Assign to multiple children who work together toward a shared goal

Reward Ideas

Small (5-10 stars)

  • Extra story at bedtime
  • 15 min tablet time
  • Favorite snack
  • Stay up 15 min late

Medium (15-25 stars)

  • Movie night choice
  • Friend sleepover
  • Park/playground trip
  • New book or toy

Large (30+ stars)

  • Theme park visit
  • Special day out
  • Bigger toy/game
  • Weekend adventure

Daily Tracking

Marking Tasks Complete

The main board shows all tasks for the current week. Here’s how it works:

Click the star to mark complete

Each completed task earns one star. The star lights up yellow when clicked!

View by day or week

Easily see what needs to be done today or view the whole week at once

Add comments

Click “Add comment” on any day to leave encouraging notes or feedback

Best Practices

✓ Review together daily: Sit with your child each evening to mark completed tasks together

✓ Be consistent: Check the board at the same time each day to build a routine

✓ Celebrate progress: When they earn a reward, make it special and acknowledge their hard work

✓ Adjust as needed: If tasks are too easy or hard, modify them to keep motivation high

Monitoring Progress

Statistics Dashboard

The statistics panel shows you at a glance:

Weekly Stats

  • Total stars earned this week
  • Completion percentage
  • Comparison with last week

Reward Progress

  • Stars toward next reward
  • Progress bar visualization
  • Rewards earned history

Performance Indicators

Your child’s avatar changes based on weekly performance:

😊

Happy Avatar

Completing 70% or more of tasks

😐

Neutral Avatar

Completing 40–69% of tasks

😔

Sad Avatar

Completing less than 40% of tasks

Advanced Features

Set up task reminders to help your child stay on track:

  • Choose specific tasks to remind about
  • Set reminder time (e.g., “7:00 PM for homework”)
  • Pick which days reminders should be sent
  • Get browser notifications when it’s task time

Create rewards that multiple children work toward together:

  • Encourages teamwork and cooperation
  • Perfect for family activities (movie night, park trip)
  • Stars from all assigned children count toward the goal
  • Teaches collaboration and shared responsibility

Compare performance across multiple children:

  • Side-by-side performance stats
  • Weekly completion rates
  • Identify who needs extra encouragement
  • Celebrate each child’s unique progress

Note: Use comparisons carefully! Focus on individual improvement rather than competition between siblings.

Pro Tips for Success

Start Small

Begin with 3-5 simple tasks. Once your child builds confidence, gradually add more responsibilities.

Be Specific

“Brush teeth for 2 minutes” is better than just “Brush teeth.” Clear expectations = better results.

Keep Rewards Achievable

Set reward thresholds your child can reach within 1-2 weeks. Too distant = loss of motivation.

Praise Effort

Use the comment feature to encourage effort, not just results. “Great focus today!” goes a long way.

Ready to Get Started?

Create your free account and start building positive habits today!