Search Results for: blog teaching your children to use a grocery budget

How to Talk to Your Kids about the Economic Crisis

“How can I talk to my kids about the economic crisis?” It is a common question that most parents face today. As prices on consumable goods rise, from food and gas to the cable bill, and families feel themselves pinched, even the youngest children are starting to notice that things around them are changing. Neighbors and friends may be moving away, favorite stores and restaurants may be closing, and everyone seems to have to sacrifice something they enjoy just to get through this time. Parents should see this time in our history as a teaching moment, but the lessons should … Continue reading →

Mad Dash for Serious Summer Cash

My daughter is hunting for a summer job, so she can earn money to purchase this. She’s seven. I told her that if she picked up her toys, set the table for dinner and help fold towels, at least five days a week, I’d give her $5. She turned down my offer. “I want to walk dogs for money,” she replied dryly. “Not fold towels.” Well, then, I sure hope our neighbors don’t turn her down when she solicits her services or she’s going to be one poor kid this summer. And by poor, I mean the Bank of Mommy … Continue reading →

Household Management: Moving Out

I like organizing things. Oh woe is me. The attribute that is the delight of my husband is sometimes more of a trial, since I won’t rest until I feel like our household is organized. And trust me, organization never comes. I moved from my parents house into a home with my husband. He comes from a family where one key organizer did all of the household management tasks, and many of these tasks were done invisibly. I come from a family where two people did the management and integrated the kids into the management of the household. Yes, sometimes … Continue reading →

Teaching Children Self Reliance

Often when we think about preparedness and self-reliance the focus turns to food storage and a financial reserve, but have you prepared your children for adulthood? Have you taught them self-reliance? These are important skills to teach your children. It is not fun for a child to go off to college and not know the basic skills to take care of their laundry or how to cook. But there are additionally skills you should teach your children as well. One important skill that you should be teaching your children is to manage money well. You can do this in many … Continue reading →

Homeschool Lessons from Real Life: Recession

One of my most favorite about homeschooling is that you can tailor lessons to coincide with real life. With our country currently feeling the financial squeeze of recession, and possibly a depression, what could be a better time to teach lessons on the economy? Whether you do unit studies, more classical regimented studies, or unschool with subtle steering, here are some ideas you can use to teach your child about the recession. Read books about previous depressions and recessions. More specifically, get books about the great depression of the 1930’s. There are novels and first account stories and biographies for … Continue reading →

Family Home Evening: 4 Ideas for Teaching Life Skills to Your Children

One fund idea for a family home evening night is to have a time when you focus on teaching specific home making skills to your entire family. You should open with a short spiritual thought and scripture at the beginning of the night. You could plan to do this as “Missionary Prep” series or “Family Helper” series once a month. Here are four ideas of skills you may want to teach your family. 1) You can have a family home evening that teaches your family to cook. Some families have a system already implemented in which they have each child … Continue reading →

For the Love of Math

Recently, someone posed a question in the forums about how to instill a love of math in your child. I have to start out by saying that I’m not sure every kid will love math. I think some families have a certain affection for numbers while others don’t. In my own children what I hope they love is how to learn. On the other hand, I believe the poster was looking for specific resources and ideas that make learning math fun. Here are some of my favorites ideas that win the vote of approval from my own children: Math Manipulatives … Continue reading →

Teaching Your Children to Manage Money with Christmas Shopping

One easy way to begin to teach your children about budgeting is to sit down and help them plan out a Christmas budget. This can work for older elementary children, as well as teenagers. If you are helping your children to buy Christmas presents for their friends and family members this is a great way to help limit the spending, while still giving your child freedom to make their own choices regarding gifts. You may want to start by deciding with your child who she will be giving gifts to. You should take into consideration Secret Santa exchanges that may … Continue reading →

Teaching Toddlers About Money.

I don’t think it is ever too soon to discuss money with children. My parents rarely did – it’s a generational thing I’m sure. My sisters and I didn’t learn about balancing checkbooks or what our parents did on a day to day basis with their money. I sort of knew that sometimes we had cash, and sometimes we didn’t, but I know my mom never wanted us children to have to worry about their financial status. Oh sure, my parents encouraged saving and having summer jobs, but I want to go further with my child. I’m starting now. My … Continue reading →

Teaching Your Kids Resourcefulness

Teaching your kids to be resourceful will give them the life skills they need in order to weather any storms that may bubble up in life. According to the authors of 365 Ways To Help Your Children Grow, being resourceful mean taking on challenges, taking time to think through the challenge and then using any available resources to solve the challenge. There are many ways to teach resourcefulness. One way is to teach everyday skills. Household tasks, like doing laundry or grocery shopping, are ideal ways to teach your kids how to be resourceful. Not only that, you also teach … Continue reading →