Kids and Money $$$

We, like most parents of young children, struggle to find a way to teach our kids the value of a dollar. Our good friend, Dave has helped us change the way we view money and it's helped us teach our children to do the same.

Each week, our 3 daughters are assigned several "jobs" that are to be done around the house. My two oldest girls, who are 9 and 8 do the breakfast dishes, dinner dishes, their own laundry, clean their bedroom and bathroom and gather trash to be taken out. My 6 year old isn't quite ready for laundry and dishes, but she is more than capable of cleaning her own room and bathroom and helping her sisters with their other chores.

Fridays are "pay day". As long as the girls have completed their jobs for the week and have not been docked for fighting or not listening, they each have the potential to earn $6. We require them to put at least 10% of their earnings for the week in an envelope that is set aside specifically for tithing to our church. The remaining money is then divided between and envelope for saving and one for spending.

This system works GREAT for our family. The kids are an essential part of keeping our home running as it should and they have a large sense of responsibility for the jobs assigned to each of them. I've noticed that they're much more careful about what they choose to spend their money on than they were when they were spending OUR money. (=

I can't recommend Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University Jr. enough. For more information or to order the FPU Jr. materials, click HERE.