Prime
Money habits to teach your children
Min Atek
What you need to know:
How much pocket money should be given to your children in boarding school?
The call came through in the midmorning. He wanted my counsel because his daughter had just called from school. She is 12 years old and will soon become a teenager. She recently joined boarding school and had called her parents to replenish her pocket money because it had all run out in a space of two weeks.
“How much did you give her?” I asked out of curiosity, and was told she had been given Shs100,000. It has been a while since I was in high school but I thought that was a reasonably decent amount to give a child. It was also quite alarming to imagine she had used it all up in the short span of time.
Initially I laughed because I thought the parents’ concerns were not life-threatening. But I have been thinking deeply about how our children have been taught and what their sentiments about money are.
At what age should children be tasked with handling money? Is it worthwhile thinking about teaching them the concepts of excellent stewardship? Should they be allowed to go make their school fees payments or they are too young and unable to shoulder such responsibility?
How much pocket money should be given to your children in boarding school? Does it even matter? One parent gave me some insights into what she does. She said because her children go to schools that provide fairly decent meals and accommodation , initially she would sit and talk to each child and then make a calculation of about Shs1,500 per day for snacks, bites and packed eats that children normally take to school.
She said, she has since raised the amount to about Shs2,500 per day. Her idea made sense because it allowed the children to break down their expenditure and parents guided them into basic financial planning and execution. Also, it lessened the burden of providing huge sums of money for the children, which stresses most parents.
Money is part and parcel of our day- to-day lives. How they relate with money will perhaps be a direct reflection of how we see and use money. As parents, are we responsible stewards of money and resources?
What money habits are we subconsciously passing onto our children? Can they be counted upon as worthy stewards who shall not only navigate their financial waters but grow our resources as well? What money conversations are taking place in your spaces with your children?
