Last year I went to my child’s kindergarten conference and learned that most of the children in her class did not know how to identify or use money, and absolutely NO understanding of its value. This is an occurrence that is happening more and more each year, as we parents use our credit and debit cards to buy everything. What we model when we do that is that a card is all you need to get groceries, buy toys, clothes, or anything that might be needed or desired. As a consequence, kids today have no sense of the value or worth of money. Because it is our job as parents to help our kids learn important life skills, we need to remember the one essential life skill that we need to teach: MONEY sense. That means identifying, understanding and knowing what money is, how and when to use it, and what it is worth.
So, my suggestion to you is: if you want your child to succeed both in school and in life, then start giving your kids money in a weekly allowance. That way, they will have the power to practice saving, handling, budgeting and using money. Think of the learning possibilities! Not only will they begin to learn the names and uses of coins and dollars, but they will learn out to add, subtract, and use money, practicing all the important mathematical skills that come along with it. AND, in these times of economic insecurity at all personal, professional, state, and national levels, our children will be able to begin to understand how budgets are used and how we all can’t spend more than we have. Think of the life skills that can be learned at the price of just 1 or 2 dollars in a weekly allowance…go ahead you can afford it!
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