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Pediatrics | Family Matters | Mothering Family Matters: Readers Write...Allowance for kids Deborah We've been using an allowance system we adapted from a terrific book called"A Penny Earned." Each child gets their age in dollars each week (i.e., thefour-year-old gets $4, the six-year-old gets $6) and it goes in equalportions into 4 jars: spend, short-term savings, college, charity. Thespending money accumulates in a purse (each child has one) and when we goout shopping, the children bring their purses and can spend what's there.No more whining in stores -- the kids are empowered to spend what theyhave, and every trip is an opportunity to talk about value, prices, etc. (Iloved what Alison said about her nine-year-old knowing how to shop forprice and value.) The savings jar accumulates and can be used when a child wants somethingout of the range of the weekly spending money. One key here: the spendingand short-term savings money is for the kids to do with what they will.Input is ok, but mom & dad can't veto (with a few exceptions, of course). My daughter already had enough college money accumulated to open a passbooksavings account, and the charity money gets allocated whenever it reachesabout $25. She's been bringing it to Sunday school, and once we bought ashare in a sheep and a rabbit through Heifer Project International, whichprovides livestock to women throughout the third world. They have acatalogue, and it was wonderful to look at the pictures of people andanimals and decide what to buy for a family in another part of the world. Agreat experience for my child. I'm enthused about this system (as you can tell!) and wanted to share it.It truly empowers the kids, is very adaptable, and I only wish MY parentshad used it! Deborah Deborah is the founder of Hysteria Publications, the publisher of books of humor and Hysteria magazine, a quarterly dedicated to women's humor. Please visit their Web site, The Laugh of Recognition
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