All About the Kiddos
What have you taught your kids about MONEY???
Isn't it funny to look back to when you were a kid and your relationship with money? I remember when I was 8, for valentines day, I got a red plastic heart full of conversational hearts and my first savings passport book. This year, I plan to take my kids (5 1/2 and 20 months) to the bank on Valentines day to open their own savings accounts. They are fortunate to get money for all kinds of occasions and I don't want them to think they can just spend it. I am also lucky because I don't have the child that wants it all, every time we go out..... but in saying that one thing I learned recently is that my daughter things that every time you go in a store, you should buy something.... this definately comes from me, as I do 99% of the shopping... and when I go somewhere it's on a mission, rarely do I have time to window shop.... so, I found it interesting her perspective. (and glad we can nip that little idea now vs. later). She's at an age where maybe she'll get an allowance, but we haven't really established anything yet.... HAVE YOU? What is your system???
Here's an interesting blog about it:
http://beingfrugal.net/2008/01/10/how-i-taught-my-preschooler-the-value-of-a-dollar/
Personally, I'm toying with the 1/3-1/3-1/3 idea.... 1/3 to keep, 1/3 to charity and 1/3 to savings for all moneys. Plus, whatever they put into savings, we will match.
What game plan do you have?
What have you taught your kids about MONEY???
Isn't it funny to look back to when you were a kid and your relationship with money? I remember when I was 8, for valentines day, I got a red plastic heart full of conversational hearts and my first savings passport book. This year, I plan to take my kids (5 1/2 and 20 months) to the bank on Valentines day to open their own savings accounts. They are fortunate to get money for all kinds of occasions and I don't want them to think they can just spend it. I am also lucky because I don't have the child that wants it all, every time we go out..... but in saying that one thing I learned recently is that my daughter things that every time you go in a store, you should buy something.... this definately comes from me, as I do 99% of the shopping... and when I go somewhere it's on a mission, rarely do I have time to window shop.... so, I found it interesting her perspective. (and glad we can nip that little idea now vs. later). She's at an age where maybe she'll get an allowance, but we haven't really established anything yet.... HAVE YOU? What is your system???
Here's an interesting blog about it:
http://beingfrugal.net/2008/01/10/how-i-taught-my-preschooler-the-value-of-a-dollar/
Personally, I'm toying with the 1/3-1/3-1/3 idea.... 1/3 to keep, 1/3 to charity and 1/3 to savings for all moneys. Plus, whatever they put into savings, we will match.
What game plan do you have?
They all have savings accounts through ING-they love seeing how much they have on the computer.
We make them save any gift money they get for b-days etc except for maybe like 10.00, they can spend if they want.
We have chores they do each week for allowance which they LOVE doing to make $.
We also have college accounts for each that we contribute to when we can.
I like the 1/3 idea too.
I just think it is so important to teach them to save now!! We go over our bills with the older kids so they see how expensive it is to live. I love seeing Aidan (the savers) face when we show him the house payment check-LOL!
They are big givers too and at our parish we can chose where we donate so the kids like to put some of their coins in the envelope for buying candles to go in the cathedral, it's neat because it's one of the things they really enjoy there and they can help support it.
Tracie that is too funny! But it's great your kids are such savers!
We have given the kids their age in allowance since they were little. So right now Hannah gets 4 dollars a week and Connor gets 3. It doesn't add up to a ton, but they do get something. We try to teach them that money is earned and not thrown at them. When they start to beg for things, I try to explain to them that we work very hard to buy the things we get and that we should only get things if we NEED them or if it's a special occasion. The money they get from us and from others goes directly into their piggy bank and then as it gets bigger, goes to the bank. We practically never spend their money for them....it all goes to savings. Occasionally we pretend that they are using their money so that they have to part with it, but of course we put it right back in their banks. Hannah is becoming more aware of the cost of things as we shop, and will quite frequently tell me the price. One day I told them they could pick out a snack, but it had to be on sale. I showed them how to find a sale price and they spent the rest of the trip looking for things and saying, "nope, we can't get that. It's not on sale. Oh look mommy, this is on sale! Mom, next week if this is on sale can we get it?" I think the most important thing is to teach them that they can't have everything they want and to expose them to costs. If it's something they feel they HAVE to have, that is probably where we will make them use THEIR money in the future. I wish I paid more using cash so they could help me count out the money and feel what it is like to hand over great sums of money at one time. Alas, I am a credit card user...
Karri
Karri
