Learning About Money

This is something new we just started trying. I want to teach my daughter the about money in a real sense. No offense, but pictures of quarters and pennies on a flat page just aren't the same as real money in your hand. Munchkin earns an allowance as well, but is still having some trouble determining why she doesn't always get change back when she pays for things etc. Besides that, I want her to learn the (almost lost) skill of counting back change.

In the mornings when we are ready to begin school, I will sell her the supplies she needs, and throughout the day if she needs something else, like a new pencil or an eraser, I will sell her that item as well (the money is all mine, we are just using it for learning, I do not take money she has earned for this).

She uses a dollar to purchase a notebook that costs 73 cents.

I count the change back 74, 75, and a quarter (25c) makes $1.00.

Spending 25c for an item that costs 11c.

And her change is 14c.

At the end of the day, she will sell the supplies back to me and it will be her job to count back the change. I plan to teach her about depreciation this way as well later, by telling her that now that she has used her colored pencils they are not worth as much, so I will not pay as much for them when I buy them back. I may also "charge" her for her lunch or snack etc. This may get too difficult to keep up with in the long run, but for now it provides just enough interruptions that we welcome the break. Today I had her purchase each item individually, but in the future I plan to have her purchase two or three things at once and add the costs together herself. Sometimes I will ask for correct change as well. I also plan to change the prices at least weekly so that she gets the benefit of counting change for different amounts.

So far, this practical application is working well for us. What works for you in your family?

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