Family chores, pocket money and teaching kids about money and responsibilities

mrcow

If you live in my house, you help out with the jobs. Pull your weight like everyone else.

Even my 6 year old gets that.

I wouldn't dream of starting to pay them for it! All that's going to do is build in a sense of entitlement (as if there are any kids around these days that need any more of that!).

marisco_2

I don't believe in linking pocket money with chores. To me paying children to carry out basic tasks, means you are putting a monetary value on family cooperation. I do expect my children to help out for free, just as my parents did with me as I grew up. That's not to say that this approach is not fine in other families though, you just have to decide what suits you.

My children get £5 a week each. This covers their comics and sweets nicely and they save a little too if they are after something a bit pricier. Both boys really enjoy the independence which comes with having a little bit of their own money to manage. It is heart warming to see what they have done with their newfound wealth. If you are unsure of what level to set on pocket money, a good way to get a sense of how much is enough, is to talk to other mums at the school gates. Most are happy to say what they give and how it works for them.

Thinking long term also, I am very open with them both about how I manage my finances, and will continue to inform them in an age appropriate way, how to handle this vital life skill as they grow up. I think enabling your children to be money savvy is one of the most important things you can instil in them.

ahomemadetouch

the natwest pigs are back

olgadapolga

We do a mixture of paid and non-paid jobs around the house. There are a few specific jobs that the children are "paid" to do and an awful lot that they are expected to do but are not paid for.

Examples of non-paid jobs:
clean the bath after use
putting their dirty laundry in the basket/putting clean laundry away
laying the table
making beds and cleaning their rooms
helping with the baby

Examples of paid jobs:
bringing down everyone's dirty laundry for washing
clearing away everybody's plates etc from the table
helping with our business (small things like photocopying/stamping envelopes/taking stuff to the Post Office)

We also reward them for doing exceptionally well with their academic work.

There was no way I was going to just hand over pocket money; in my house they have to earn it. My mother was handed everything on a plate and so I grew up with a parent who had no idea about the value of money; we were always broke. As a result I am money-conscious to a point of thriftiness. If I can't pay for it outright then I don't have it, it's as simple as that. The only exception I have ever made to this was a mortgage which we scrimped and saved to pay off within ten years.

My own children know that they cannot have whatever toy/magazine/other desire without earning up for it. My boys are Lego mad but it is so expensive that this is the only way to manage their obsession and "needs". They have also learned to shop around to get the best price and sometimes to wait until the optimum time to get the best price (eg, if there's a voucher that can't be used until XYZ date then they will wait). They are learning the value of money, how to shop around and that getting into debt for unneccesary things is never the best idea. If they can't pay for it (except for birthday and Christmas presents of course) then they don't have it. It works for us.

I'm not totally mean though, we do have other treats like trips out to theme parks and the cinema which they are not expected to contribute to!

System

My kids never had pocket money. They got clothes on their back, a warm home to live in and food in their tummies, gifts on their birthdays and Christmas and bits in between. If they wanted money they had to bring it in from outside and they did (well three of them did anyway).


All three of my eldest had paper rounds, my eldest son had a gardening round too. My younger children were too 'above' it but they didn't get any money from us to make up for it. Their loss.

Kayalana99

Judi wrote: »

My kids never had pocket money. They got clothes on their back, a warm home to live in and food in their tummies, gifts on their birthdays and Christmas and bits in between. If they wanted money they had to bring it in from outside and they did (well three of them did anyway).


All three of my eldest had paper rounds, my eldest son had a gardening round too. My younger children were too 'above' it but they didn't get any money from us to make up for it. Their loss.

Just out of curiously what happens when they went shopping with friends? Or to the cinema?

System

They didn't go shopping with friends unless they

a) had money.

b) had a reason to go shopping.

Cinema, was never really an issue as the nearest one was miles away.

I did pay a weekly subscription to a local youth group where they did outdoor and indoor activities on a Saturday. Sunday we took them out to Nature trails and walks that didn't cost anything but the fuel in the motor if the weather was nice.

In the week my son would be very often found stripping the bearings on his skates. My daughter would be behind him (very much the tomboy) and my youngest daughter would be playing with bobbles and my makeup.

Second son had the same opportunities as his sisters and brother to make money but he couldn't be bothered. He still got to take part in the activities at the Youth Club but had to wait for his birthday or Christmas for his major wants.


Same with our youngest son.


This is a picture of one of our typical walks in the countryside. My youngest son. He was only about 6 there and he is 18 now.

GobbledyGook

Ha, looking at this thread I think my kids are quite hard done by. They've got more chores than most folks have mentioned!

Ah well I doubt it'll do them any harm!

System

I suddenly feel incredibly guilty that we never had chores to do when growing up :eek: mum was always very house proud and I think felt our cleaning wouldn't be up to her standard. I think she felt we got in the way when we did try and help. We also got pocket money