How and When do you Talk to Your Kids about Money?

As of lately, whenever I walk into any store with my oldest daughter, she sees something she wants. It may be a sweet treat at the grocery store or some kind of Disney princess book or figurine that she might see as we are cruising the Target aisle. Now, she doesn’t really whine or throw a fit (Thank God!)  if I say “Well, we don’t need that today” or “We are not shopping for us right now.”  However, she will say, “Okay, Mommy, how about tomorrow?”  Or “How about for my birfday?”  Well, after I chuckle inside at my little negotiator, I make a mental note that I really need to do some research on how to teach her about money?  Of course, the teacher in me knows how to teach her the practical money concepts such as how much is a penny worth, and a nickel, etc.  That you count by 5’s when you count nickels and count by 10s when you count dimes and so on and on. So I can teach her those concepts all day long, but am I really teaching her how to be smart with her money? I am teaching her how to be responsible financially? To not waste money or just spend it on every princess doll she sees? As a parent, I am just not sure how to start talking to my children about money. These are the questions I ask myself.

Do I start with an allowance and is my daughter old enough for an allowance? Do I give her money for doing her chores? To me, chores are just being part of the family and it’s the child’s responsibility to help around the house.  Then, what do you do when your child gets money from relatives? For all I know, my kids think that money is tucked in every greeting card from their grandparents.

Well, parents if you are at this stage with your children right now or soon will be, and have some of the same questions that I have,  I found this fabulous website and blog that will educate you a little more on  how and when to teach your children about money.

The website is www.threejars.com. Some of you may have heard of it, but this Mama had not. Now, I am hooked and can’t get enough information. In fact, I found a particular post that was most helpful and wanted to share it with you.  It is called “5 Phrases that Make Money Savvy Kids.”

http://blog.threejars.com/2010/10/5-little-phrases-that-make-money-savvy_28.html