At what age should children start doing "chores" around the house and start earning an allowance?
Since Trinity is 4 now and can follow directions, Dan suggested that we start giving her little jobs to do so she can earn her own money. I thought it was a great idea so this past week we started doing "chores" together. Her jobs are to make her bed, help me unload the dishwasher, put her dishes in the sink when she's done eating, throw her dirty clothes in the hamper, help clean up messes (toys) and put her own laundry away. Naturally I have to help her do some of these things, but I can already tell that she WANTS to do it on her own.
As we started this new "chore" activity, I noticed that Nehemiah (who is only 2) wanted to help just as much as Trinity. He is so helpful! He can't do as much as she does, but he will do whatever I ask him to do. He has helped unload the dishwasher (he just puts things on the counter for me to put away), taken clothes out of the dryer and put them in the laundry basket, puts his dishes on the counter when he's done eating (he can't reach inside the sink), throw his dirty clothes in the hamper, cleaned up messes (toys) and put clothes from the washer into the dryer (I just take out little handfuls and hand it to him.) It is so neat seeing both my children WANT to help me! Come to think of it, it will be really nice once they have their jobs down and I don't have to help anymore...less for me to do! LOL! They both love to sweep and vacuum too! Yay!!!
So here we are with 2 kids earning money each week. They only make $1 per week but it brought up a new idea for me. I need to start teaching them how to manage money NOW! I want them to wise with their money and learn the proper way to spend and save!
Before Dan and I had kids, I was working full time. We weren't rich, but we lived very comfortably. If we wanted something, we would just go and buy it. Thankfully Dan knew enough to not charge things on the credit card! I had never had a credit card before and at one point early in our marriage, I suggested that we just start charging things. He told me we could charge things, but we would be paying if off in full each month. Smart guy!!! However, looking back...I wish that we would have SAVED money back then! We knew that I would stop working to become a stay-at-home Mom once we had children, why didn't we prepare for that better? (Well, we at least paid off our vehicles and bought our first house before they came so I can't say that we didn't prepare, but there was no "savings plan.")
Anyway, I want to teach my kids how money works. You work and EARN what you have. You buy only what you can afford. You help others when you can help. You honor God and give Him a portion of what He's blessed you with.
This lead to an interesting conversation with Trinity! I asked her if she knew what tithing was. She said no. I explained that God blesses us with money so it is our duty as a follower of His to give back to Him. I told her that 10% is what the Bible tells us to give and then asked if she would be willing to give .10c for the offering on Sunday. She said, "I guess so!"
I was so happy she didn't yell out "NO!" :)
As I "paid" the kids, I explained that on Sunday they were going to tithe their .10c. They seemed excited about it.
As the opportunity presents itself, I want to go into detail a little more about how we can give to God in numerous different ways. Financially is the main one people think of, but we can give of our gifts, talents, time, service, friendships, encouragement, etc. God just wants us to be a cheerful giver! (2 Corinthians 9:6-8)
The rest of their money is going in a piggy-bank so they can save up for something they want. This is their "fun" money. They LOVE going down the toy aisles at the store and show us everything they want. Once they get enough saved up, it may be fun to go on a little shopping trip just for them!
We also started a savings account for both of them when they were born. They get $10 a month deposited in it and then any additional money they get (from birthdays, Christmas, or other special occasions) also goes in there. There are days that they both have more money than Daddy and I do! LOL! We decided to save this for them now so we could bless them with it later. I'm not sure if it'll be a down payment for a house, or to pay for college, or what we'll do with it exactly, but my family helped me growing up and I want to do the same for my kids. They deserve the best start they can get and the proper knowledge of how to provide for themselves.
What do you do to teach your kids about money and how to save?
This lead to an interesting conversation with Trinity! I asked her if she knew what tithing was. She said no. I explained that God blesses us with money so it is our duty as a follower of His to give back to Him. I told her that 10% is what the Bible tells us to give and then asked if she would be willing to give .10c for the offering on Sunday. She said, "I guess so!"
I was so happy she didn't yell out "NO!" :)
As I "paid" the kids, I explained that on Sunday they were going to tithe their .10c. They seemed excited about it.
As the opportunity presents itself, I want to go into detail a little more about how we can give to God in numerous different ways. Financially is the main one people think of, but we can give of our gifts, talents, time, service, friendships, encouragement, etc. God just wants us to be a cheerful giver! (2 Corinthians 9:6-8)
The rest of their money is going in a piggy-bank so they can save up for something they want. This is their "fun" money. They LOVE going down the toy aisles at the store and show us everything they want. Once they get enough saved up, it may be fun to go on a little shopping trip just for them!
We also started a savings account for both of them when they were born. They get $10 a month deposited in it and then any additional money they get (from birthdays, Christmas, or other special occasions) also goes in there. There are days that they both have more money than Daddy and I do! LOL! We decided to save this for them now so we could bless them with it later. I'm not sure if it'll be a down payment for a house, or to pay for college, or what we'll do with it exactly, but my family helped me growing up and I want to do the same for my kids. They deserve the best start they can get and the proper knowledge of how to provide for themselves.
What do you do to teach your kids about money and how to save?
You're great! I'm so glad there are people like you out there that are willing to say, "Yes, a 2 year old CAN do chores." I find many times children will think work is play if they get to spend time with mom and dad. Teaching them early about contentment during work will help them see that it's not about taking the bad with the good, but that the bad can be turned into good based on one's perspective. Besides, not teaching a child how to be responsible at a young age will only make it more challenging for them in the future. (I've witnessed this first hand) Keep up the good work Christy and thank you for making a blog to let others in on what they can do to bring joy to their families. God Bless!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Nicole! I really try to just do the best I can and let God lead. I started this blog as a hobby for me but it really holds me accountable to keep going with things that I start because I have told people about it. LOL! I'm so glad you enjoy it!!!
DeleteWe forget that "kids" were getting married at 15/16...We can't imagine that happening now, because our culture teaches our kids that they can't handle things. Our kids are capable of more than we give them credit for! Timmy has chores and he loves them- he actually gets mad if I do the dishes without him! I love your blog and I think you're going to be a blessing to many!
ReplyDeleteYou're right! Kids don't get enough credit and a lot of parents today think it's the school or church's job to teach their kids certain things... I appreciate your support and encouragement!
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