“Money doesn’t grow on trees.” This saying may seem obvious, although today’s youth seem to think the opposite. Who can blame them though – unlike the baby boomers the new generation of youth have grown up in a time of economic prosperity and are used to being coddled by their parents. In 2011 alone, over 85 percent of college graduates will be moving back home (Huffington Post).
I read this quote in an email recently and after being shocked, started agreeing with them, and thinking we needed to do something to start Kiddo off on the right track.After a little research, I found the Melissa and Doug Responsibility Chart.
I really liked how it isn't called a 'chore chart', that there are 'responsibilities' expected of children daily as well. I wanted something that would reinforce values, and help Kiddo understand that doing 'chores' around the house is a way to be respectful AND responsible! The chart hangs on the wall and the top part is magnetic, so you just take the markers down weekly and start over- no mess, no fuss. There is also a second dry erase board, for adding more responsibilities/events or notes! The set comes with 25 labeled responsibilities, plus 3 blank ones for you to add your own. Plus you get 60 smiley face daily markers. Each one has a different comment on them, like 'excellent!' or 'good job!'.
We went with the basics, as we started the chart in September, and Kiddo was having issues getting ready for school in the morning. So ours starts off with brushing teeth, getting ready for school, then school issues of saying please/thank you, sharing and showing respect, then back to home of picking up toys, helping with inside and outside chores, no whining, taking care of pets, and then getting ready for bed. Not a whole lot for a preschooler, but obviously things that ARE achievable!
We started her off with getting a penny per smiley face. Generally this added up to about 50-60 cents. So about $2 a month. We then set up 3 banks for her- Save, Church and Spend. By allowing her to color the templates, and put on the name stickers, she had a personal investment in the banks as well. Any time she gets money, including her allowance, she is to divide between the three. When we gave her change it was very easy. I was very proud to see her put the larger coin amounts in her church box!
By the end of November, she was ready to move on, allowance wise, and I advised her I would double the amount on the chart, IF she had been real good that week, as a bonus incentive. It worked extremely well. Our only problem was she had figured out to raid our wallets and dressers for loose change (which she did divide equally into her banks)! Hence, we found ourselves having to give her $1 bills! It was very interesting to see how her mind worked on that problem. She just rotates which bank gets the $1 that week, and yes, she started with her church bank!
What, to me, as a Mom, is proof that she IS learning responsibility, is that she no longer asks us for $1 for church on Sunday, for the collection plate, but instead, takes it from her Church bank! She has also been VERY quick to put any money she receives as a gift, or just because (that's a long story- basically she has a tendency to get $$$ from the old guys at the donut shop whenever she goes in- she smiles, they miss their grand kids being little, and waa-la she walks out with money. SIGH, it's a grandparent thing...). When she wants to spend the money we open the bank and tally up what she has, and then equate in into tangible items, like $8 for a Schleiff horse, $4 for a Golden book, $3 for a coloring book. 7 times out of 10, she decides she doesn't want to loose that much from her bank (a result of the first, 'How about I pay half and you pay half' question that gained a NEGATIVE response!). By giving her the option of saving or spending, she's actually saving more than she would have, when she just had the one bank! So overall, the 3 bank process has been a huge success!
Now that we are 4 months into the chart, I can see where we can drop some of the responsibilities and start adding others, to stress more the 'chores' part, that she is balking at on some days. I still want to give her 'easy' ones, but as she likes to tell you, she's almost 5, and is a big-girl, so the chart can change accordingly. That is one of the things I LOVE about this chart- it can GROW with your child! And it is very well priced! (hint, shop around, and look for sales this time of year!)
And yes, it IS a good idea to teach the importance of money at an early age! I wish we had started last year when Kiddo was in her first year of preschool! Chicago Healers Practitioner Julie Murphy Casserly (CLU, ChFC, CFP) stresses the importance of instilling good money habits in children, as early as possible and offers some easy ideas for the preschool set, during this Christmas season:
I read this quote in an email recently and after being shocked, started agreeing with them, and thinking we needed to do something to start Kiddo off on the right track.After a little research, I found the Melissa and Doug Responsibility Chart.
I really liked how it isn't called a 'chore chart', that there are 'responsibilities' expected of children daily as well. I wanted something that would reinforce values, and help Kiddo understand that doing 'chores' around the house is a way to be respectful AND responsible! The chart hangs on the wall and the top part is magnetic, so you just take the markers down weekly and start over- no mess, no fuss. There is also a second dry erase board, for adding more responsibilities/events or notes! The set comes with 25 labeled responsibilities, plus 3 blank ones for you to add your own. Plus you get 60 smiley face daily markers. Each one has a different comment on them, like 'excellent!' or 'good job!'.
We went with the basics, as we started the chart in September, and Kiddo was having issues getting ready for school in the morning. So ours starts off with brushing teeth, getting ready for school, then school issues of saying please/thank you, sharing and showing respect, then back to home of picking up toys, helping with inside and outside chores, no whining, taking care of pets, and then getting ready for bed. Not a whole lot for a preschooler, but obviously things that ARE achievable!
We started her off with getting a penny per smiley face. Generally this added up to about 50-60 cents. So about $2 a month. We then set up 3 banks for her- Save, Church and Spend. By allowing her to color the templates, and put on the name stickers, she had a personal investment in the banks as well. Any time she gets money, including her allowance, she is to divide between the three. When we gave her change it was very easy. I was very proud to see her put the larger coin amounts in her church box!
By the end of November, she was ready to move on, allowance wise, and I advised her I would double the amount on the chart, IF she had been real good that week, as a bonus incentive. It worked extremely well. Our only problem was she had figured out to raid our wallets and dressers for loose change (which she did divide equally into her banks)! Hence, we found ourselves having to give her $1 bills! It was very interesting to see how her mind worked on that problem. She just rotates which bank gets the $1 that week, and yes, she started with her church bank!
What, to me, as a Mom, is proof that she IS learning responsibility, is that she no longer asks us for $1 for church on Sunday, for the collection plate, but instead, takes it from her Church bank! She has also been VERY quick to put any money she receives as a gift, or just because (that's a long story- basically she has a tendency to get $$$ from the old guys at the donut shop whenever she goes in- she smiles, they miss their grand kids being little, and waa-la she walks out with money. SIGH, it's a grandparent thing...). When she wants to spend the money we open the bank and tally up what she has, and then equate in into tangible items, like $8 for a Schleiff horse, $4 for a Golden book, $3 for a coloring book. 7 times out of 10, she decides she doesn't want to loose that much from her bank (a result of the first, 'How about I pay half and you pay half' question that gained a NEGATIVE response!). By giving her the option of saving or spending, she's actually saving more than she would have, when she just had the one bank! So overall, the 3 bank process has been a huge success!
Now that we are 4 months into the chart, I can see where we can drop some of the responsibilities and start adding others, to stress more the 'chores' part, that she is balking at on some days. I still want to give her 'easy' ones, but as she likes to tell you, she's almost 5, and is a big-girl, so the chart can change accordingly. That is one of the things I LOVE about this chart- it can GROW with your child! And it is very well priced! (hint, shop around, and look for sales this time of year!)
And yes, it IS a good idea to teach the importance of money at an early age! I wish we had started last year when Kiddo was in her first year of preschool! Chicago Healers Practitioner Julie Murphy Casserly (CLU, ChFC, CFP) stresses the importance of instilling good money habits in children, as early as possible and offers some easy ideas for the preschool set, during this Christmas season:
- You can start talking to your child about money when they are 2 or 3 by explaining that everything costs money – from the food they eat, the clothes they wear, to the house they live in. These talks need to go beyond the necessities too. Explain that new toys, accessories or video games are things your family can live without.
- Introduce new toys to them a few at a time, rather than showering them with an over-abundance of playthings. This will help them get used to the fact that they don’t need a heap of toys to be happy.
in conclusion, get your family a Responsibility chart, and start teaching your kids the true value of money. Their adult selves will thank you for it one day!
Disclosure / Disclaimer: I purchased this item for personal purposes. No compensation, monetary or in kind, has been received or implied for this post. Nor was I told how to post about the item.
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