In the early years after my divorce I had to tell my daughter, Khushi, with some regularity, that we couldn‘t purchase everything she laid eyes on. ―Can‘t you just go to the bank and get more money?‖ she inquired, exasperated, thinking the ATMs at our credit union were spewing free cash 24/7. Thanks to Saturday morning cartoons, schoolyards and the Internet, there‘s no shortage of items or events for our kids to covet. But since it‘s not feasible or desirable to make their every wish a reality, here are some ideas to get your child enlightened about money management, especially if you‘re on your own.
Let your kids
see you crunching a budget, cutting coupons, paying bills - everything but the cussing part. Ask them questions to draw them into what you‘re doing and why. Start a Mason jar to collect loose change that will translate into a day at the zoo when it‘s filled. Show them how money works, because they‘ll learn to how handle it (wisely or not so much) by watching you.
Get your
kids started on an allowance and let them make their own choices, good and bad. I always thought a good guideline was a dollar per year of age per week - enough for them to feel rich, but not so much to lose a ton with a bad decision. Youknow that glow-in-the-dark saber will fail in the light of battle, but your little guy doesn‘t - and won‘t—unless you let him choose. And when you‘re there to pick up the pieces, literally and figuratively, ask him whether he‘d make the same choice next time.
Monopoly, The
Great Piggy Bank Adventure and other board and online games are a great way to teach kids about budgeting and spending. Talk while you play so they can learn as
they go, and consider teaching the 80/10/10 rule early: 80% to spend, 10% to save, 10% to give.
: I handle food,
clothing and necessities, and Emma gets a sizable monthly allowance - one that makes her girlfriends wish they lived with us. But I‘ve gotten the chance to explain that it‘s Khushi‘s responsibility to purchase family presents, decide if she can afford attending a friend‘s skating party and budget for DVD rentals. After that discussion, ours no longer sounds like the fun house…but Khushi knows she can‘t have everything she sees, so she‘s learned to choose carefully.
In my opinion,
there‘s nothing more righteous than a child saving for his or her first major purchase. My normally generous girl became tighter than the bark on a tree while saving for her MP3 player, but she had a goal and she wasn‘t going to be deterred. While it‘s tempting to help out, don‘t. Saving is a necessary skill. Plus, there‘s no doubt that first song will sound especially sweet when the time comes for her to celebrate reaching that finish line.
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