The Allowance Debate

Every person that raises a child eventually has to decide whether or not they will implement an allowance. Children grow up before you know it, so it is important to have a plan ready before the time comes.

There are some experts who recommend that children shouldn’t get an allowance at all; they argue that giving kids an allowance is the equivalent to welfare – kids get money for free. While I agree that getting money for free is a terrible idea, I feel that with the right rules and discussion, an allowance is actually a great way to get children financially literate.

When I was growing up, my parents gave each of us kids an allowance. This allowance was tied to the chores that we were assigned to do each week, such as doing the dishes, taking out the trash, vacuuming the floor, dusting and others. The younger kids were assigned chores that were easier, while the older kids were assigned harder ones. Because of this and our ages, the youngest kid, myself, received $2/week while the oldest received $6/week.

My parents offered additional chores that we could do to earn money. Mowing the lawn earned a kid $12 (our lawns were quite big). Cleaning the pool was another additional chore. On the refrigerator was a chart where each child would tally their allowance for the week and any additional chore income. My parents didn’t give us money at the end of each week, rather they gave us money when we wanted to spend it. Then we would subtract the money we used from the running total on the chart.

While I agree with my parents that an allowance is a good idea for kids, I have a different opinion in one area. I think that children shouldn’t get an allowance for doing regular chores around the house because I feel they need to learn that pitching in with household duties is part of being in a family. If they want to earn money, they can do the not so common chores, like mowing the lawn, raking the leaves, etc.

An allowance is a great way for children to learn about finances, budgeting and the value of working to earn money. What are your thoughts on an allowance? Let me know in the comments.

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