What you need to know
Maintaining order and harmony in a family with five children is not an easy task.
To bring order to their busy household, a Tennessee couple created a set of rules and expectations for their children to follow.
Years later, their youngest daughter Hannah Birch, now 24 and a mother herself, went viral when she shared a TikTok video reflecting on her and her siblings’ unique upbringing, from the rules about being talkative to the expectations for monthly family yard work and chores.
“Some of the things my family did may have certainly been outside the norm, but they really helped us be creative and learn responsibility and accountability, mostly without realizing it,” she tells PEOPLE exclusively.
Birch admitted that although her parents’ habits were not “normal” by conventional standards, she is now deeply grateful for them. “A lot of the rules helped prepare us for the real world,” she says.
Housework was compulsory, but Birch’s mother created a fun system called “Bank Check,” in which she would come to their rooms every morning and give the children points for cleanliness.
“She would check to see how well the bed was made, if the clothes were folded, and if everything was put away,” Birch recalled.
“It’s always brother versus sister, and the team with the most points at the end of the month either wins another financial reward or, even more excitingly, gets to choose their next family activity.”
hannah birch
When someone complimented their behavior at a restaurant, they had another opportunity to earn a small reward (usually just a dollar). Although the gesture was simple, it encouraged them to always be on their best behavior.
The money her parents earned felt especially meaningful given that they rarely bought presents for her or her siblings, except for birthdays, Christmas, and other special occasions.
“I saved my money and spent it on things I really wanted,” Birch said. “I think the way this was implemented for us helped us understand the value and responsibility of every dollar.”
To really help her children learn the value of money, mothers took one child to the grocery store each month and gave them $20 to plan and buy dinner for the whole family.
Whatever they didn’t use, they had to keep. But one of the Burch brothers spent months saving money to go shopping and ended up surprising everyone with a fancy steak dinner.
hannah birch
Apart from introducing a more creative and fun system, Birch’s parents also implemented some “strict” guidelines that their children at the time did not really like.
“One of the strictest rules in my family was the age you got your first cell phone,” she reveals, adding that she didn’t have her own cell phone until she was around 15 years old.
Birch remembers playing outside with friends and neighbors until her mid-teens, enjoying nature without the distractions of screens.
“I remember finding this very unpopular and unfair at the time, but looking back on it now, it’s a rule I’m very grateful for,” she admits. “Partly because of this, I had a very fulfilling and almost extended childhood.”
Certain TV shows, even children’s shows like SpongeBob SquarePants and The Suite Life of Zack and Cody, were also “off-limits” in Birch’s home, especially if her parents deemed the content inappropriate.
Still, she and her siblings found a way around the rules by watching the show when their parents weren’t home.
“This has always been a fun bonding moment for us, and I think that’s what we got, more than the actual content of the show,” says Birch. “Our parents wanted us to know that we weren’t allowed to copy their behavior or language, and we understood that too.”
williams
At first it seemed like the purpose was to protect them, but in retrospect Birch believes it was to protect their childhood.
They eventually pursued their own hobbies, including sports, music, and part-time jobs, but delaying cell phone use allowed them to still play together and spend time outside.
“I think that’s a big reason why my family still enjoys so much time together,” Birch says. “We still love going out together, in part because we have so many memories to relive.”
Ironically, social media is now her full-time job, but she’s still figuring out what that means. But if there’s one thing she knows, it’s that she will be enforcing “most, if not all” of her parents’ rules with her children from now on.
