Allowances Xposted

Kender wrote:

My girls will be 7 years old next month. I think I am about ready for
dishing out allowances. I know they are. Any advice much appreciated.

How much do you give (if any)? Is it contingent on anything (chores,
behavior)? If so, do you keep charts or anything? What can they do with
their money? Do you request that they save/give any of it? Spend it freely?
Thanks,


I give my 6 year old daughter $1.25 every week for allowance. She gives
25 cents to her Brownie troop as dues. It isn't contingent on anything
(chores) because I want her to learn money management skills. She has
chores to do as a member of our family. We wanted to separate the two
because, well, I didn't want her to associate money with ordinary tasks
or chores.

So far, she hasn't really spent any of it. But she's allowed to spend it
on whatever she wants.

Jeanne

Only our daughter receives an allowance right now - 5.00 a week. She is
responsible for keeping her room picked up, making her bed, taking care of
her folded laundry, feeding her cat and when I need her help with other
things around the house. I dont ask her to do much so it's usually just
setting the table occassionally, clearing it off, dusting, etc.

Of that 5.00, she has to put 1.00 a week into the caring can. When there is
a sum of say, 15.00 she donates it to various charities. I find different
ones taylored to her interests and print out the information and put it in
her can (an old coffee can) Stuff like save the whales and she loves getting
mail back thanking her for her generosity.

If she wants a big price item, what we do is, have her go through her things
she doesn't use or want and I list them on ebay, since I sell on there as a
stay at home job anyway. She uses that money to save up for something and
right now she wants a new computer - with a flat screen, because she likes
mine I've had a lot of sucess with this, she sold her My Twinn dolls (for
about 100.00 each) and used it to by American girl stuff, so to me, it was a
fair trade and I didnt have to pay for it.

When my son turns 5, he will start receiving allowance too. Right now, he
doesn't have much responsibilty because although he tries, I usually have to
do it over and it's more trouble than it's worth. I know others will argue
that with me on him having more responsibilities but other than picking up
his toys, putting his clothes in the hamper, it usually turns out way worse
than it would have been if I had done it myself.

Kari
mom to Kaylie (8) Noah (4) and Xander (3 mos)

Only our daughter receives an allowance right now - 5.00 a week. She is
responsible for keeping her room picked up, making her bed, taking care of
her folded laundry, feeding her cat and when I need her help with other
things around the house. I dont ask her to do much so it's usually just
setting the table occassionally, clearing it off, dusting, etc.

Of that 5.00, she has to put 1.00 a week into the caring can. When there is
a sum of say, 15.00 she donates it to various charities. I find different
ones taylored to her interests and print out the information and put it in
her can (an old coffee can) Stuff like save the whales and she loves getting
mail back thanking her for her generosity.

If she wants a big price item, what we do is, have her go through her things
she doesn't use or want and I list them on ebay, since I sell on there as a
stay at home job anyway. She uses that money to save up for something and
right now she wants a new computer - with a flat screen, because she likes
mine I've had a lot of sucess with this, she sold her My Twinn dolls (for
about 100.00 each) and used it to by American girl stuff, so to me, it was a
fair trade and I didnt have to pay for it.

When my son turns 5, he will start receiving allowance too. Right now, he
doesn't have much responsibilty because although he tries, I usually have to
do it over and it's more trouble than it's worth. I know others will argue
that with me on him having more responsibilities but other than picking up
his toys, putting his clothes in the hamper, it usually turns out way worse
than it would have been if I had done it myself.

Kari
mom to Kaylie (8) Noah (4) and Xander (3 mos)

Kender wrote:

My girls will be 7 years old next month. I think I am about ready for
dishing out allowances. I know they are. Any advice much appreciated.

How much do you give (if any)?


We don't right now (kids are almost 9 years, 6 years, and
6 months old), mostly because I've just been lazy.

Is it contingent on anything (chores, behavior)?


I don't really believe in giving allowances for
chores. You do chores because you're part of the family
and we all have work to do, not because you're getting
paid for it. Getting paid for chores sort of suggests
that you can decide not to do chores if you're willing to
forego the money ;-) However, there are probably times
when it makes sense to *dock* an allowance for not doing
chores (e.g., you have to pay Mom to clean your room if
you're not willing to do it) or having inappropriate
behavior (e.g., if you're wild in the house and break
something, perhaps you have to use allowance money to
pay for it).

If so, do you keep charts or anything?


I don't think you have to keep charts, but it
has to be absolutely clear to the kids how whatever
system you use works. If it takes charts for them to
understand, then by all means use charts.

What can they do with
their money? Do you request that they save/give any of it? Spend it freely?


On the one hand, I think the point of having your
own money is to be able to do with it what you will, but
I do think you have to have limits. I allow the kids to
use their own money to get things that I think are silly,
unnecessary, or frivolous, but I would not allow them to
use their own money to get something I felt was dangerous
or inappropriate. The other big point of allowances is
to teach children to manage their money, so I do believe
that if you're going to give an allowance, it's ideal to
be able to give enough that children can have some money
for immediate spending, some to save for medium-term goals,
some to save for long-term goals (e.g, college), and some
to give to charity. They're not going to start developing
fiscal discipline all on their own (well, most 7yos won't,
anyway).

Best wishes,
Ericka

Kender wrote:

My girls will be 7 years old next month. I think I am about ready for
dishing out allowances. I know they are. Any advice much appreciated.

How much do you give (if any)?


We don't right now (kids are almost 9 years, 6 years, and
6 months old), mostly because I've just been lazy.

Is it contingent on anything (chores, behavior)?


I don't really believe in giving allowances for
chores. You do chores because you're part of the family
and we all have work to do, not because you're getting
paid for it. Getting paid for chores sort of suggests
that you can decide not to do chores if you're willing to
forego the money ;-) However, there are probably times
when it makes sense to *dock* an allowance for not doing
chores (e.g., you have to pay Mom to clean your room if
you're not willing to do it) or having inappropriate
behavior (e.g., if you're wild in the house and break
something, perhaps you have to use allowance money to
pay for it).

If so, do you keep charts or anything?


I don't think you have to keep charts, but it
has to be absolutely clear to the kids how whatever
system you use works. If it takes charts for them to
understand, then by all means use charts.

What can they do with
their money? Do you request that they save/give any of it? Spend it freely?


On the one hand, I think the point of having your
own money is to be able to do with it what you will, but
I do think you have to have limits. I allow the kids to
use their own money to get things that I think are silly,
unnecessary, or frivolous, but I would not allow them to
use their own money to get something I felt was dangerous
or inappropriate. The other big point of allowances is
to teach children to manage their money, so I do believe
that if you're going to give an allowance, it's ideal to
be able to give enough that children can have some money
for immediate spending, some to save for medium-term goals,
some to save for long-term goals (e.g, college), and some
to give to charity. They're not going to start developing
fiscal discipline all on their own (well, most 7yos won't,
anyway).

Best wishes,
Ericka

We give allowance for just being alive - i.e., they can't have a job yet so
they get allowance. How they spend it is totally up to them BUT, we are now
starting not to LOAN any to them ahead of time. At this age we are spending
money on clothes, boots (cute ones, not winter), nail polish etc. Chris is
starting to spend his money on models of all sorts or movies. Again, they
save to buy things most of the time. Thus, savings! Chores are not
negotiable here. They either do them or privileges get taken away. Chores
are something that everyone does in the house to keep it going, garbage,
dusting, vacuuming, laundry, cooking, all kinds of things. So far they
understand that concept. NOW, if they want to earn extra money, shoving
snow is not considered a regular chore, or helping rake the yard, helping
clean the car. There are all kinds of chores that are not in the expected
group (cleaning their room, dishes, picking up, cleaning up play room -
expected) that they can earn anywhere from a quarter to a dollar for
helping. It seems to work here. We don't do charity here - money for
church is our responsibility as parents for the family not theirs, and also
giving money to organizations collecting for a cause. Eventually, they will
figure out how long to save (IMO) for items and start to save even longer
than they do - long range stuff. College etc., I feel is also an issue that
gets handled by parents or college students during breaks. Anyway, it works
here.

Shirley
Chris and Kathleen 1/95

"Donna" wrote in message
...

"Kender" wrote in message
news:x%wOb.93301$xy6.166081@attbi_s02...
My girls will be 7 years old next month. I think I am about ready for
dishing out allowances. I know they are. Any advice much appreciated.

How much do you give (if any)? Is it contingent on anything (chores,
behavior)? If so, do you keep charts or anything? What can they do with
their money? Do you request that they save/give any of it? Spend it
freely?
Thanks,


My daughter is still too young for allowances, but I can tell you what my
own parents did, if that might help.

We got allowances freely. They were not tied to chores. The way it was
explained to us was that we were part of a family, and because of that, we
had rights (e.g. money from the family coffers) and responsibilities (e.g.
chores) that were interdependant, but that the former wasn't reimbursement
for the latter.

We were allowed to use our allowances however we wished. When we all got
paying non-family jobs, half of every paycheck had to be put in a college
savings account, but allowance was considered pocket money.

We each had chores to be completed. As I recall, they consisted of
something like 1) make bed daily, and tidy own room weekly. 2) Walk dog
daily. Each of us rotated weekly through either a) feeding the dog,
setting and clearing the dinner table and emptying the dishwasher as
needed.
As we got older (the stuff I just described was early pre-teen stuff - 8
years old, maybe?), we added daily tidying of one downstairs room to be
done
before any parent got home, and weekly dusting and vacuuming of said room,
plus one bathroom. That started when we were about, oh, I don't know,
maybe
10.

If we wanted to earn extra money, there were indeed paid chores for each
age. I can't remember what they were, but I'm sure they involved yard
work,
etc.

Cautionary tale: my stepdaughter's mother paid her for chores. At about
age eight she decided she could live without money, and refused to do any
chores whatsoever. Not maliciously, mind, you, she just calmly quit.
So I would REALLY urge you not to link chores to allowance. It leaves
a
well-meaning parent nothing to do when the child realizes that s/he
doesn't
really need money. Which they don't.

HTH

Donna

We give allowance for just being alive - i.e., they can't have a job yet so
they get allowance. How they spend it is totally up to them BUT, we are now
starting not to LOAN any to them ahead of time. At this age we are spending
money on clothes, boots (cute ones, not winter), nail polish etc. Chris is
starting to spend his money on models of all sorts or movies. Again, they
save to buy things most of the time. Thus, savings! Chores are not
negotiable here. They either do them or privileges get taken away. Chores
are something that everyone does in the house to keep it going, garbage,
dusting, vacuuming, laundry, cooking, all kinds of things. So far they
understand that concept. NOW, if they want to earn extra money, shoving
snow is not considered a regular chore, or helping rake the yard, helping
clean the car. There are all kinds of chores that are not in the expected
group (cleaning their room, dishes, picking up, cleaning up play room -
expected) that they can earn anywhere from a quarter to a dollar for
helping. It seems to work here. We don't do charity here - money for
church is our responsibility as parents for the family not theirs, and also
giving money to organizations collecting for a cause. Eventually, they will
figure out how long to save (IMO) for items and start to save even longer
than they do - long range stuff. College etc., I feel is also an issue that
gets handled by parents or college students during breaks. Anyway, it works
here.

Shirley
Chris and Kathleen 1/95

"Donna" wrote in message
...

"Kender" wrote in message
news:x%wOb.93301$xy6.166081@attbi_s02...
My girls will be 7 years old next month. I think I am about ready for
dishing out allowances. I know they are. Any advice much appreciated.

How much do you give (if any)? Is it contingent on anything (chores,
behavior)? If so, do you keep charts or anything? What can they do with
their money? Do you request that they save/give any of it? Spend it
freely?
Thanks,


My daughter is still too young for allowances, but I can tell you what my
own parents did, if that might help.

We got allowances freely. They were not tied to chores. The way it was
explained to us was that we were part of a family, and because of that, we
had rights (e.g. money from the family coffers) and responsibilities (e.g.
chores) that were interdependant, but that the former wasn't reimbursement
for the latter.

We were allowed to use our allowances however we wished. When we all got
paying non-family jobs, half of every paycheck had to be put in a college
savings account, but allowance was considered pocket money.

We each had chores to be completed. As I recall, they consisted of
something like 1) make bed daily, and tidy own room weekly. 2) Walk dog
daily. Each of us rotated weekly through either a) feeding the dog,
setting and clearing the dinner table and emptying the dishwasher as
needed.
As we got older (the stuff I just described was early pre-teen stuff - 8
years old, maybe?), we added daily tidying of one downstairs room to be
done
before any parent got home, and weekly dusting and vacuuming of said room,
plus one bathroom. That started when we were about, oh, I don't know,
maybe
10.

If we wanted to earn extra money, there were indeed paid chores for each
age. I can't remember what they were, but I'm sure they involved yard
work,
etc.

Cautionary tale: my stepdaughter's mother paid her for chores. At about
age eight she decided she could live without money, and refused to do any
chores whatsoever. Not maliciously, mind, you, she just calmly quit.
So I would REALLY urge you not to link chores to allowance. It leaves
a
well-meaning parent nothing to do when the child realizes that s/he
doesn't
really need money. Which they don't.

HTH

Donna

Is it contingent on anything (chores,
behavior)? If so, do you keep charts or anything? What can they do with
their money? Do you request that they save/give any of it? Spend it freely?

i read something a loooooooong time ago (meaning before kids!) that
suggested giving allowances for chores you would pay an outside person
to do but not for things that are expected of them, such as good
grades. i've always remembered this article 'cos i liked the idea, but
now that i've read some other suggestions, i'm undecided as to what
i'd give an allowance for!

right now, they have to take care of all their toys in the living room
at night if they want to watch a movie or have books read to them
before bed. Alix does a wonderful job, sometimes Callie has to be
forced to pick up even one thing.


my girls will be 4 in March and have no concept of money, except that
they can go to a drawer in the kitchen and fill their little purses
with change. my 15 yo niece tried giving Alix a dollar last week for
her purse, Alix said, "no thanx." my niece promptly let me know i
wasn't raising the girls "right." i resisted taking them to toy stores
for so long, not wanting to deal with the "i wants" but it hasn't
happened...yet. sometimes i'll even ask them if they want to buy a toy
and they'll say no. a cashier brought out this box of free toys
children can choose from when they visit the store. it was filled with
all sorts of cool little stuff: a packet of paper and markers;
miniature people; etc. Alix picked out a little pink ball about the
size of a quarter and Callie chose a small duck with half the fuzz
wore off, like it was some other kid's duck and it was dropped in the
store so it was picked up and put in this box. i'm sure this will all
change...

pam sahm to alix and callie 3/24/00

Is it contingent on anything (chores,
behavior)? If so, do you keep charts or anything? What can they do with
their money? Do you request that they save/give any of it? Spend it freely?

i read something a loooooooong time ago (meaning before kids!) that
suggested giving allowances for chores you would pay an outside person
to do but not for things that are expected of them, such as good
grades. i've always remembered this article 'cos i liked the idea, but
now that i've read some other suggestions, i'm undecided as to what
i'd give an allowance for!

right now, they have to take care of all their toys in the living room
at night if they want to watch a movie or have books read to them
before bed. Alix does a wonderful job, sometimes Callie has to be
forced to pick up even one thing.


my girls will be 4 in March and have no concept of money, except that
they can go to a drawer in the kitchen and fill their little purses
with change. my 15 yo niece tried giving Alix a dollar last week for
her purse, Alix said, "no thanx." my niece promptly let me know i
wasn't raising the girls "right." i resisted taking them to toy stores
for so long, not wanting to deal with the "i wants" but it hasn't
happened...yet. sometimes i'll even ask them if they want to buy a toy
and they'll say no. a cashier brought out this box of free toys
children can choose from when they visit the store. it was filled with
all sorts of cool little stuff: a packet of paper and markers;
miniature people; etc. Alix picked out a little pink ball about the
size of a quarter and Callie chose a small duck with half the fuzz
wore off, like it was some other kid's duck and it was dropped in the
store so it was picked up and put in this box. i'm sure this will all
change...

pam sahm to alix and callie 3/24/00