I often find myself feeling a bit overwhelmed when my kids ask to buy something unplanned for. I try to explain our spending limits, but I also recognize that simply discussing this topic doesn’t give them a chance to practice healthy money habits. What really matters is the opportunity to practice, practice, practice to master a skill.
A few weeks ago, I came across a brilliant idea. I was listening to my go-to podcast show, The Thousand Hours Outside by Ginny Yurich, when everything suddenly made sense. Ginny was interviewing Dr. Stephen Day, the author of Teach a Kid to Save book.
About the Author
In real life, Dr. Stephen Day is a university professor. He taught many teachers how to create mini-economies in their classrooms. As he proclaims in his book, he and his siblings were born into this concept. His father, Harlan Day, had written the book called ‘The Classroom Mini-Economy‘. His parents tested the concepts on the brothers as they grew up.
About the Book
In this book, the author gives hands-on advice to parents to introduce their kids to the world of a money-led economy by creating a household mini-economy. The safe environment (household) allows kids to practice money earning and management. The system explained is highly flexible and scalable to suit your own family values.
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The book is filled with practical questions for both parents and children; furthermore, it offers lessons to teach children along the way. The author urges to keep answers and ideas light to start with, as too much seriousness could prevent long-term commitment from kids.
The clever structure of the book allows readers to whiz through the key concepts in the first chapter called “The Mini-Economy Quick-Start Guide.” Although I think once you buy into the concept, you will want to read the following chapters for a deeper understanding.
Our Take on the Book
We just had a conflict about something precious going missing only a couple of days after the kids received it. I feel absolutely done carrying the burden of purchasing things for them if they cannot look after them at all. This book could not have come at a better time in our lives. My eldest is big enough to understand the basic concepts laid out to put into practice.
My expectation is that this system creates a win-win situation for both parents and children. It will not only provide a learning opportunity for our kids, but also align our chores, allowance, budgeting, and spending. My eldest is in first grade, and I am already thinking of getting his classmates’ families on board for more fun.
Discussion With Our Eldest
Me: Do you remember when we were in the shop and you asked me if you can have this and that?
Son: Yes, and the answer is no.
Me: How does that make you feel?
Son: Sad.
Me: How does that make me feel?
Son: Hm.
Me: Sad too. I think it is time you learn about the money cycle. What goes around, comes around.
Son: Huh? What do you mean?
Me: Let me show you. In this episode, Bluey spent her 5 bucks from the tooth fairy for something she doesn’t really like and so she would have liked it back. Her dad explained that it doesn’t work that way. But we can see how that 5 bucks goes around the market in full circle.
He instantly got hooked, especially after the example from the Bluey – Goes to the Market episode. After this, I told him that we need a name for our mini-economy and that we need to design our own household currency.
There you go, the seeds have been planted, and I honestly cannot wait to update you on what’s next in our mini household economy journey.
If you wish to find out more from the author directly, check out his substack here. It’s called Paper Robots: Helping Families Talk About Money and Work