A lot of parents struggle with the idea of paying kids an allowance. It can be especially hard to figure out how much to pay your kids an allowance as well as what chores should be required in exchange.
Giving your children an allowance will motivate them to help out around the house but is earning money in exchange for doing chores right for your family?
Allowance for Kids & Printable Chore Ideas
When considering giving an allowance to kids, it is best to keep in mind that your kids will learn from their experiences and their allowance should increase when their chores are more demanding as well as when their chores are done right.
Teach Kids to Apportion their Allowance
Teaching kids to save their money and earn an allowance with a specific goal in mind is a great way to help them learn financial responsibility at an early age. Teaching your children to always put some of their earned allowances into savings is a great way to show how money can add up over time and see that hard work, as well as a little patience, can pay off over time.
Opening a bank account for your child can give them a real-life money management experience every time they make a deposit or withdrawal. Encourage them to set goals and allow them to be rewarded when reaching important milestones.
Encourage Overtime
When your children are saving for a higher priced item, offer them the ability to earn some extra allowance by helping you with bigger tasks or taking on more responsibilities of their own.
Adding chores to the weekly list can help them to work a little more in exchange for a raise or giving them a bigger task each week can help them to earn a larger allowance.
Allow Spending
We are teaching our kids how to appropriate funds and the only real way to learn this important life lesson is to experience it. If you don’t allow your kids to spend some of their allowances, it not only makes an unhappy employee but it prevents them from figuring out that hard work pays off.
Set up a system that allows them to save some money and use some of their allowances as well.
Money Management
When letting your children spend their allowance make sure that they are paying attention to all of their options when shopping. Just because they have an extra five on them during this shopping trip doesn’t mean that they have to spend it and they should most certainly look for a good deal while scanning the aisles.
Checking online for coupons and reading through the ads each week is a great way to encourage smart money decisions.
Keep Age in Mind
Chores should change as your child ages or reflect the amount of compensation earned. For example, a toddler will not be able to reach the sink in order to handwash dishes but they could help load some cups into the dishwasher or assist in other tasks as they learn the correct ways to complete different tasks.
Chore Ideas
Be sure to check the Printable Spring Cleaning Checklist and the Printable Checklist for a Super Clean House as well as teach your kids How to Clean a Toilet the Right Way with these Tips.
How Much Allowance Should You Give for Chores?
Giving your children an allowance is a great way to teach life lessons like financial responsibility as well as basic skills like keeping their home looking nice.
When deciding how much allowance for your kids is appropriate, keep the types of chores and efficiency of your children’s skills in mind while leaving room to grow as they age.
A younger child can earn a smaller amount because their needs are smaller and they are just learning how to do chores around the house. As they get older they will be able to perform tasks more efficiently and their pay should increase to reflect that.
A good place to start for some parents when considering how much of an allowance they should give for chores is their age. A lot of parents find success with a dollar per week per year of age, so as an example a ten-year-old would earn $10 each week and a five-year-old would earn $5 each week.
Do your kids earn an allowance? What types of chores are expected of them and how much do they earn each week?
About Thirty Something Super Mom
My journey started after a Crohn's disease diagnosis, inspiring a commitment to well-being. This site shares my distinctive approach to healthy living with my collection of nutritious recipes that boast authentic flavors, mimicking the indulgence of traditional dishes. I love sharing guilt free recipes for low carb, keto, gluten-free, paleo, and the specific carbohydrate diet. I also share tips on natural living, including homemade cleaners and cleaning hacks. I also share my experience as a veterinary technician and pet groomer, to integrate pet health tips, homemade dog food recipes, and grooming insights to ensure your pets thrive.
Samantha Rowland
Friday 24th of August 2018
Love this !
Trina| My Pro Parenting Tips
Monday 6th of August 2018
These tips are super useful. I feel worried about allowances as my daughter doesn't understand money handling. I want her to learn money management skills. I will follow your advice.