And that is exactly the mantra I was singing in my head (from the Wonder Pets for those not familiar) when I took this picture of the kids using the pooper scooper to rid the yard of dog waste last week. It was a team effort:
And they did the entire yard! I am so excited to have my little helpers. One of the phrases I have heard quite often lately is, "I want to help!" Jadyn is very into helping with tasks she sees me engaged in and although it doesn't interest Jake nearly as much, her willingness to help is contagious. They love to help me throw out the recycling, load and unload the dishwasher, sort laundry, dust, cook meals and set the table for dinner. And this leads us to a subject I mentioned in my last post; the subject of money.
Every time we have to spend the day shopping, I reward the kids by allowing them to buy a small toy such a new hot wheel or small toy dog. But recently it has become an issue when they want something bigger or expect something on the occasion we make multiple trips in the same month. SO, while this is obviously geared more towards Jake, I did some research on how to approach and teach preschoolers about money and we have started giving Jake and Jadyn an allowance. They each earn a dollar a day for doing certain chores (as the ones mentioned above) and now when we go shopping, Jake is quickly learning the difference between instant gratification or saving for something he really wants. And despite our reservations, he really seems to get it.
So while I really wanted to blog about my little helpers anyway, I was also hoping this might start a conversation with my fellow bloggers about how they have or plan to approach money issues with their little ones. The books I checked out from the library gave very little advice for children under 5. However, to help those who have a vested interest in teaching their kids how to be money smart, I would recommend both books. The first is Raising Financially Fit Kids by Joline Godfrey and the other is Raising Money Smart Kids by Janet Bodnar. I am also open to suggestions and comments on the subject.
Finally, I have to add that as much as I love both kids eagerness to help out, the reality is that at this age, their "help" usually makes most tasks more difficult and/or time consuming then if I just did it myself. The exception was them picking up the dog poop and I will be more than happy to pass that chore onto them permanently.
3 comments:
We haven't started with the money thing yet. I do plan on giving an allowance, but I haven't figured out the details yet.
It's going to be an interesting thing for me. We are more comfortable than my parents were when I was a kid, so I can afford things they couldn't. But, I'm not sure how to handle that. I learned a lot about money growing up the way I did.
I've read the same books you have. I haven't really seen anything for the under 5 age. I don't have any advice to give!
We are pretty weird about not buying the boys things when we take them shopping. I think it stems from the fact that we don't want them to get into a consumer state of mind - if you do xx, you get something. Now if I was planning to buy them something when I shop, I will tell them we are going to the store to buy xxx.
I totally get rewarding kids for good behavior and think it's important, but I also think other types of rewards are important too. Praise, time doing something special, food treats, etc.
I struggle because there's really no "right" answer.
Cooper has a bank and he knows coins and bills go in there, so if we ever have spare change he wants to put it in his bank. But, it's because he likes to put in and take out the coins/bills and not related to money, because he always wants to dump it all out and start over once he has made all of his deposits.
As far as rewards for stores Cooper doesn't get anything unless we are planning to get him something, generally he knows in advance. We try to tell Cooper 'part of going to the toy store is being able to leave the toy store' and that is because he will throw a huge fit leaving the train table, not that he hasn't gotten anything. So far he's not too concerned with whether he gets something or not, and enjoys browsing toys or playing w/the train tables, etc in stores. He has mentioned that he doesn't have a certain toy/book/object at home now and then, so I'll add that to a list of things for the next occasion (for example he's mentioned he wants Diesel 10 and says "I don't have him at home", so he's getting it for his b-day). There are times when he has said he wants something, and I will tell him that we don't have money for it. Not because we couldn't buy it, but because I don't want to or did not plan to buy whatever thing it is he wants at the moment. I guess I'm trying to instill a sense of 'planned purchases' in him? Although, I have no game plan about how to teach him about money, and I agree w/Laura, there's no "right" answer. So far we're just trying to do what seems like the right thing for us.
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