Teaching kids about money and value
I’m always looking for ways to improve as a parent. I want to improve how I communicate with my children, how I teach them valuable lessons, and how I spend time with them so that they will develop a desire to come visit me even when visiting isn’t a requirement. Building family traditions and creating memories is a great place to start.
As my children begin to grow, I want them to value our time together, value the belongings I give to them, and begin to think of innovative ways to bring value back to our family.
As a former classroom teacher, I had to ask myself, “How can we raise children who find value in all aspects of life?” It drives me nuts when I come home with a toy for them, or new item for the house, and my children mindlessly waste or break it.
Why can’t they see the value in me working a 9 to 5 job, purchasing something we need or want, and respect the item enough to keep it in relatively good condition?
Raising children who understand value doesn’t happen haphazardly. My husband and I have been reflective parents from day one, and sometimes that means getting creative with our teaching methods.
Keep reading to discover the solution that’s working for our family.
Why is teaching your children about money important?
Throughout documented history, cultures have used various forms of money to exchange goods. Whether it was silver, gold, tools, livestock, shells, or sticks – you name it, and if someone needed it, it was seen as valuable and considered money.
In more modern times, our western culture has veered away from a bartering system, but the concept is still being used today.
You need food.
The grocery store has food.
The grocery store needs money to purchase more food.
You have money.
You trade money for food, and the grocery store trades that money for more food.
Teaching children about money imparts insight into how the world works. Giving children real-life opportunities to experience money gives them the tools to be financially successful in their adult lives.
Finding creative solutions for teaching money in modern times…
As a society, it has become the norm to use debit and/or credit cards.
Checkbooks have mostly gone the way of the dodo bird (except for the person ahead of you in the checkout line when you are in a hurry). Maybe carrying cash has become something out of the norm for you.
For my husband and I, having cash on hand is a rarity. This presents a problem when we want to reward our children and teach them about the value of work and creativity.
Faced with this obstacle, we decided to get creative ourselves and come up with our own system of compensation, but we had a choice…
We could create a household currency modeled after fiat currencies that the world is comfortable with and currently using.
We could model it after a form of money that has only emerged in recent years and very few are comfortable with: cryptocurrency.
Cryptocurrency is another form of money – a digitized form. If you’re not familiar with cryptocurrency, learn more here.
My desire to raise children who value life, and my husband’s passion for sound money and cryptocurrency, became “Kidcoin”.
What is Kidcoin?
With a little intentionality, Kidcoin can be a tool you use to teach your children the basic principles of money and how to find more value in life.
You will not find Kidcoin on any cryptocurrency exchange, nor will you be able to make a profit from mining it, but there’s a good chance you’ll have fun using it!
Kidcoin is pretty simple in theory. We brainstormed with our kids (now 8 & 6) age-appropriate chores and set a compensation value.
One chore equals one kidcoin. Four Kidcoins equals one dollar, currently. (I say “currently” because my husband plans on changing the issuance and exchange rate to teach/model inflation.)
The kids track their own chores, tally their Kidcoin, and when they are ready to exchange them they can purchase items they deem valuable.
Kidcoin has been a long-lived dream in our house, and has evolved as our family evolves. Our children choose the chore they want to complete and then complete the chore. We keep a running record (ledger) of chores completed and Kidcoin earned. Then, after exchanging the Kidcoin into U.S. Dollars, the kids are allowed to make purchases.
From a parent’s perspective, starting out was a bit hard since Kidcoin is a digital currency recognized only in our household, making the exchange a bit tricky 😉 But the learning experience for our kids was irreplaceable. It’s basic banking 101.
So how does using cryptocurrency help our kids understand value?
When you teach children responsibility (completing chores), it teaches them what you value. When they tidy up the living room, they will value the time and energy they spent cleaning up and become more aware when they leave their dirty socks on the floor.
When I come home to a clean house, I’m less grumpy and more eager to engage with them immediately as opposed to needing my ten minute “me time” transition.
I’m not saying this new-found understanding happens overnight, but I am saying with time AND consistency children will see the value of the energy spent in real-life application.
When children experience positive reinforcement with Kidcoin and the freedom to purchase what they value, they, in turn, will see the world through a bigger lens. A lens where they are valued enough to choose how they spend the fruits of their labor, and will be motivated to value the life you’ve created together.