Search Results for: blog encouraging kids to make their own cash

Kids Can Barter Too

“You mean I can trade chocolate cake for Lego Friends?” my daughter asked following our conversation about the benefits of bartering. “If you can find a Lego-loving chocoholic who’s willing to part with some of her sets, then you’re in business.” Little did I know that my response would turn my 8-year-old into the next Kyle MacDonald. Cash is tight for my third grader, but the kid makes up for her empty wallet by coming up with some solid bartering bargain chips. Or, in her case, cake. Bartering is not just for adults; rather, kids can get in on the … Continue reading →

Benefits of Bartering

My 8-year-old cries poor like the Pentagon before commencing a $10 billion nuclear weapon upgrade. Granted, she doesn’t get a regular allowance, but with grandparents like these, she wants for very little. Actually, she wants a lot, but as the only granddaughter, she typically gets it all, which is why I don’t give her an allowance. This, of course, has led to many heated discussions on money, spending habits and budgeting.  However, thanks to a recently covered Social Studies unit on our country’s earliest settlers, we’ve added a new topic to our financial discussions:  bartering. Bartering is the exchange of … Continue reading →

Value Versus Price – When Not To Go Cheap

It is often said that you get what you pay for. Sometimes this statement is true, and sometimes it isn’t. I often find myself saving money at the grocery store because many store brand products, at least at the grocery stores where I shop, taste as good as or better than their pricier name brand counterparts. However, there are certain purchases where getting a good value does not necessarily mean going with the lowest sticker price. Early last year, when it was time for my oldest son to transition out of his infant car seat (which is of high quality) … Continue reading →

Encouraging Kids to Make Their Own Cash

In most homes, “encouraging” is easily interchanged with “threatening.” After all, how many parents relish seeing their fully capable teens sleeping in until noon and then lounging on the couch watching TV or texting when they could be gainfully employed at a decent summer job? Aside from the freedom to purchase expensive jeans, apps, music, and other teen-related must-haves, there are a slew of additional benefits that your child can gain from a summer job, including: learning responsibility, managing time well, honing math and reading skills, communicating, prioritizing, budgeting money and working on interpersonal relationships. However, before your child can … Continue reading →

Counting Money and Making Change

The other day, my eldest daughter and I went to the bank prior to walking through our downtown farmer’s market. My eldest daughter is marching on the way to eighteen-years-old I’ll have you know, but after making my deposit and withdrawal, I handed her the stack of bills to count what we had out of pure habit. She chuckled and confessed she’d always loved the “verifying” job and we got to reminiscing about the easy and stealthy parental ways I taught my kids about handling money, making change, and counting… When my kids were younger, every time we’d go to … Continue reading →