We intend to teach our children the value of saving money. Watch out for their belongings. Don’t waste money. Put money aside for a crisis.

The hardest part of goal setting is doing it. That’s for sure.

The (Current) Mechanisms of Our Allowance Program

We’ve spent the last few years trying different approaches to financial education for our children. We must keep our method adaptable as the students get older and more skilled. We’ve established the following allowance structure for our family to keep up with their maturing needs.

Support for Families Act

• Every student in the class has their spiral notebook.
• Keep a daily log of all the tasks they have to undertake. This may include homework or preparation for their music classes. Include things that make life easier for everyone in the house.
• As they finish a step, they cross it off the list.
• If they finish everything on time, enter their regular pay rate. Unless they do… Nada.
• Add up their weekly hours and pay them all at once on Friday.
• Ten percent must be donated and saved annually, but beyond that, they have a lot of leeway.

It’s Not a Walk in the Park

It’s not always in our power to completely remove our hands from the situation, so I tell them they have “pretty much up to them” to decide how to spend the balance of their money. (Refer to the shoe illustration below.) That is a slight difficulty, but there are other problems to solve. Do you face the same difficulties we did when you paid your children to do chores?

The Difficulties of Bribing Your Children to Do Chores

• Striking a balance between giving kids meaningful work to complete and letting them relax and have fun.
• Setting a salary high enough to keep people interested but not so high that they become complacent and stop seeking advancement. (How much, though, is that?)
• Identifying what costs they must shoulder on their own
• Considering the pros and cons of potential purchase bans.
• Setting goals suitable for the age of the learner.
• Money management skills training.

7 Unexpected Outcomes of Rewarding Children Monetarily for Housework

This method isn’t foolproof, but I wanted to share my findings. Furthermore, you might discover related phenomena.

1. They are more careful with their possessions.

The current arrangement began when I insisted my children purchase a pair of tennis shoes for use in school.

They didn’t take good care of the sneakers I bought for them. To put it mildly, our children’s footwear could have looked better towards the conclusion of the previous school year. They needed their sneakers for the 2015-2016 school year.

I calculated how much money I would need to pay them every day during the summer for them to have enough to buy a pair of tennis shoes costing around $50 and still have around $100 after taxes, tips, and other expenses were deducted.

In the interest of full disclosure, this was way too challenging for my child, who is only eight years old. She frequently failed to finish her daily tasks because she was too preoccupied with her desire to play. She barely scraped together enough for shoes but had nothing left over. She also appears to need to give her footwear the attention it deserves. Perhaps she’s still too young for this kind of thing.

Our 11-year-old son, on the other hand, is extremely careful with his footwear. He hardly ever puts them on for fun outside activities. He has expressed to me numerous times his desire to maximize their longevity.

2. They balance quality and quantity in some of their decisions.

I used the opportunity to share what I had learned about the value of shoes and why sometimes there are better options than the most expensive pair. The choice was, however, entirely theirs, and they could spend as much (or as little) as they liked on footwear. The couple upgraded to tougher footwear.

However, only some of their purchases are thoughtful.

3. They put their interests and finances first.

I normally make them pay for any additional items they request.

If they are serious about getting something, I have no problem helping. Almost always, though, they either never truly wanted it enough to make an effort or quickly devised a way to have it.

For instance, last week was the school book sale at my daughter’s school. Not having enough money to buy the book she desired, she sought more employment. She worked willingly enough to cover the shortfall.

4. They’re more efficient at handling their time.

Gradually, I’m observing improved afternoon planning on their part. They still put play before work on some days, but most days, now it’s the other way around.

They frequently needed more time to finish the day’s tasks. Not getting paid for any work is much more frustrating than not getting paid for nothing.

5. They are looking for ways to strike off on their own.

When the family complaints department hears that someone is being paid too little, I tell them I’m open to suggestions for a pay boost in exchange for taking on more work. I have yet to get any pitches.

However, the youth are actively seeking ways to get money from adults.

I enjoy watching them consider all of the options. I enjoy hearing their plans and asking them, “How will you find customers?” How much do they want to pay you, if anything? If they can do it themselves, why should they pay you?

6. As a result, there is less contention.

The best result of paying them for doing tasks is that it eliminates the need for nagging (nearly, lol).

They fully know the importance of completing all the tasks on their list. While it still annoys me to pick up their stuff or dry the dishes, I remind myself, “Their consequence for not putting their backpack away is not getting paid.” There is no longer a lecture component.

Well, that’s how I’d like to be, anyway. I’m still trying to curb my natural tendency to lecture and nag. I am, however, significantly better now. I will still deliver a lecture when necessary, but I generally prefer to let the outcomes speak for themselves.

7. They learn about sales tax, interest, prices, and bank deposits as they practice budgeting.

Spending and saving money presents natural opportunities to teach youngsters about money. They understand that the whole cost includes the advertised price and the applicable sales tax (and shipping, if applicable). When they check their bank statements, they are disheartened to realize how little interest has been added.

In addition, they are the connection between how much something costs and how hard they work to obtain that money.

I am pleased with this method’s progress in our household and their financial literacy, although we still have a long way to go and make many mistakes.