Kids On A Budget

The best time to introduce kids to budgeting is before their first cellphones, when you are still their world, the shining star that radiates all kinds of wisdom.

What also helps is capitalizing on their impatience to be grown-up. For example, giving them money to pay for groceries is a high, they feel grown-up.  Cashiers address them directly, give them the change and say have a nice day.

Credit and debit cards are money, a form of payment, but paper money is more tangible.  It has colours that represent limits: green, brown, red or blue notes.  Teaching your kids budgeting at an early age also helps you, because older kids will advise younger brothers and sisters.
“Mom doesn’t have enough money for ice cream.  We will buy it next time.”

The stress is paper money because of limit, the very essence of budgeting.  Mama used to sit us around the dining table and explain that my sister will get new shoes first because hers had been repaired to death and the shoemaker couldn’t perform miracles.  He tried his best.  We understood and waited our turn.

When I got my first job, Mama stressed the importance of putting something aside for a rainy day.  Times have changed.  There are all kinds of incentives to buy now, have now, upgrade now.  It is therefore difficult for parents to explain that credit and debit cards also have a limit because kids are so used to seeing them swiping cards for toys, sneakers, hamburgers and theme park rides.

Budgeting can be fun and educational.  The first item on the agenda is the shopping list.  It determines the speed limit.  Before leaving home, you can show them $60 in various bank notes.  That is the budget for today’s shopping.

Photo:  Nonqaba waka Msimang.

Pushing the grocery cart is fun but you are also helping them keep track.  How much do we have left on the $60?  It improves their math.  No cellphone calculations please.  It makes the whole exercise pointless.

But mom why should we have a budget? 

Because everything has a budget, including the government, the big spender.

By:  Nonqaba waka Msimang.