Comments on: A Preschooler’s Allowance

By: 20 Indoor Activities for Kids – besides TV

20 Indoor Activities for Kids – besides TV — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 11:19:28 +0000

[...] a blast to help Mom with the chores — but even if they don’t think it’s fun, it’s good for them to do chores anyway. It teaches kids that running the house is a family effort, and that life involves work (and [...]

By: Emily

Emily — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 05:43:59 +0000

I love this idea, but do you have any suggestions for what to do when the 2 year old wants what his big brother gets? I can’t figure how how to handle that problem!
Emily´s last blog ..Art lesson

By: LuLu

LuLu — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 16:20:03 +0000

This is something my parents did with me as a child, well not so much the giving and savings, but an allowance and allowing me to make my own decisions with it. As a small child it was normal for me to have more money than either parent I was always a big saver and penny pincher! This is something I will definitely be doing with my children. As a Dave Ramsey Fan I agree its okay to let our kids “settle” with “Kinda Had a Party Barbie” if they can’t afford celebration Barbie or wait until they can afford it. If we don’t teach them that they’ll always go for the instant gratification method in life.

By: Jennifer

Jennifer — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 20:48:22 +0000

This is all good but I don't know how we would go about doing it with 3 kids all a little over a year and a half apart - the oldest turns 4 in a month - when the middle child doesn't "get it" but knows he wants EVERYTHING his brother gets. I think we may start this when the baby is old enough to understand so we only have to introduce it once instead of three times. The different levels of comprehension drives me nuts some days. Jennifer´s last blog post...Who What When (Where) Why and How of our cloth diapering

By: Uber Links (2/7/08) | Uber Parents

Uber Links (2/7/08) | Uber Parents — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 10:14:13 +0000

[...] A Preschooler’s Allowance A great article if you’ve been thinking about doing this. [...]

By: 10 Surprising Side Effects to Money Management | Simple Mom

10 Surprising Side Effects to Money Management | Simple Mom — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 18:02:07 +0000

[...] We talk about money with our daughter. Sure, she’s only 3, but she can understand basic concepts. She’ll be aware of our family’s financial goals because we’re okay with talking [...]

By: RF

RF — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 20:05:31 +0000

I’m reading your backlog of blogs, and I think this is a great idea, especially the saving part. From personal experience, I’m a firm believer that the little things can add up to something huge. I’ve always been a saver, and just put my allowance, birthday money, babysitting payments, etc. in my bank savings account. My freshman year in college, I took an economics course and learned that my savings could be much better served in a mutual fund, rather than the bank. So, I went to my dad and told him I wanted his help opening a mutual fund. He kind of laughed and said, OK how much do you want to put in it. My response was $5000, and that was even keeping a couple thousand in the bank, just in case. That mutual fund is now worth over $15,000. So don’t think for a second that teaching your kids to save, even the $2.75 they get for their allowance, isn’t worthwhile and can’t add up to something big with some patience.

By: A preschool milestone: First allowance | Just Five More Minutes

A preschool milestone: First allowance | Just Five More Minutes — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 12:30:43 +0000

[...] (By the way, Simple Mom created a nifty chore chart for preschoolers, complete with graphics. It’s worth checking out, along with her own thoughts on handling a preschool allowance.) [...]

By: Cherie

Cherie — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 05:14:47 +0000

I instituted an allowance system with my children when my daughter was 5. Every store we went to, she would ask me to get her something…explaining to me that it was “only” $2 or “only” $3. As soon as I started allowance (which for us was $1 for every year old you were with a slight bonus for jr. high and a bit larger one for high school when expenses are higher) and they would have to spend their own money… I was amazed to find that it suddenly wasn’t “only” $2.. it was TWO WHOLE DOLLARS!!!! Too funny! I do think kids benefit from learning money management, saving and giving techniques. I was often told I started allowance at too young of an age but I disagreed then and still do.

By: Erin

Erin — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 21:50:20 +0000

I love the idea of jars, and our daughter (5) is really getting it. She’s been taking her “Jesus Money” to church each weekend for about 1.5 years now. However, my husband and I have yet to figure something out. I was raised to do things around the house (chores) because you’re part of the family and that’s what you do- no reward. It’s expected. I did not get an allowance growing up, but my parents did not just throw money at me either for any wish I had. It worked out really well, and I never felt like either side was taken advantage of. My husband grew up on the other side. He had a $70/2 week allowance for everything when he hit Jr High. Shoes, haircuts, clothes, etc. He had chores as well and was “paid” his allowance for doing them. We are both disciplined with money, and have a healthy respect for the good and bad it can do. Yet, we grew up worlds apart on how it was handled. Any thoughts?

Erin’s last blog post…Share your grocery budget??