Teaching Fiscal Responsibility

I hate paying allowance.  Whatever Naomi needs, I buy for her.  I even periodically buy things she doesn't need - along with Sean and other loving aunts, uncles, and grandparents.  Naomi, however, is POOR!  She never gets anything, and never has money to buy what she needs.  We have tried various allowance methods - a per chore price (25 cents to empty dishwasher, 50 cents to clean the bathroom).  A toy she has chosen and has to earn.  A weekly sum of $2-3. None have lasted long or worked well.  I can understand wanting some financial freedom.   However, money burns a hole in Naomi's pocket.  It must be SPENT!  Even if it means buying mechanical pencils from the vending machine at school, Naomi is determined to do her part to improve our economy. 

Last month, while paying my credit card online, I stumbled upon USAA's recommendations for teaching children how to save.  The site recommended that paying a weekly allowance equal to the child's age was appropriate.  Nine dollars?!? That's a lot of mechanical pencils. 

I thought about it and came up with the following plan that has been working well - so far.  Naomi was told she would get a $9 allowance every week.  She would be expected to put some aside for savings and to pay her tithing.  The rest would be hers to decide what to do with - I would keep my mouth shut, no matter what she used the money for.  However, if she was not completing her chores, she would receive a deduction of her expected allowance.  Being told to go to bed too many times?  Lose a dollar.  Didn't do the dishes after I asked 5 times? Lose a dollar.  Teasing Charlotte and making her squeal/cry?  Lose a dollar.  She CAN NOT get the money back.

As yet, she hasn't earned her full allowance.  Her behavior has improved.  We're still working on the savings and tithing part of it.  Last week was her school book fair.  Naomi was counting up her money and making plans on what she would be purchasing.  She had already spent $2.50 on a plastic dog-shaped pencil sharpener.  It has movable ears, white googly eyes, and tail to which is connnected the drawer where all the pencil shavings go.  Basically, it poops pencil shavings, much to Naomi's delight.  (mechanical pencils and a pencil sharpener, talk about a combination made for one another)  While Naomi browsed the Scholastic book ad, planning what she was going to buy next, I reminded her she needed to pay tithing on her allowance last week. 

"I'm going to pay it at the end of the year, mom!" 

I tried to share with Naomi that saving tithing to pay until the end of the year is not the best plan.  While many people choose to pay their tithing that way, she may find it hard to part with such a large sum in the future.  What was 50 cents now would be $25 at the end of the year.  Not only would it be hard to part with the princly sum of $25, I pointed out that if she wasn't putting the money aside now for the Lord, how would she pay when the end of the year came?  Naomi gave me a disgusted sigh and eye roll and firmly told me, "I can pay at the end of the year mom!  It will be OKAY!"

After a few minutes more searching her book catalog, Naomi looks up to me and says, "Mom, tomorrow is Friday and that means you need to pay me my allowance!"

"Naomi"  I replied, "I've decided to wait to pay you all your allowance at the end of the year."

Needless to say, 9-year-olds don't have any sense of humor.