Exploratory Essay

To give an allowance or not to give? To attach it to chores, or not? How much? When to start? What should the responsibility of the parents be? To discuss finances with children? What should the children be expected to pay for? Those are some of the many questions that parents ask themselves regarding their children. Many experts have conducted surveys and studies to provide answers for parents who are curious on what the right answer might be, if any. While some will argue that giving an allowance to children diminishes the idea of responsibility and creates an expectation that everything done, or in some cases nothing done, will result in a monetary reward, others believe giving an allowance can be a great tool for building lifelong

Lewis Mandell, who specializes in financial literacy, believes that giving children an allowance is a “terrible idea” (Mandell, 2013). He goes as far to say it could be considered “child abuse” when a parent gives children a weekly allowance without having to earn it, and that “studies have shown that such children have less motivation and a higher distaste for manual labor” (Mandell, 2013). When I interviewed someone regarding this subject, the individual stated she did not receive an allowance growing up and will not be giving her children one. Caty Hill discusses the mistakes that parents make when they do give their children an allowance. She also provided statistics associated with giving an allowance and what parents are paying their children to do as chores. The prices range from $6.28 for mowing the lawn, to $1.18, just for making their bed. Hill mentions that parents think so much about how much to give their children, when they should be focusing on how to teach their children with the money they are given (Hill, 2016). Giving an allowance for chores is a great incentive to offer children, however it loses its value when the parents don’t teach children about money

Children are always watching their parents and will follow their examples. A survey showed that 72 percent of parents are hesitant to discuss finances with their children (Bodnar, 2015). This is where parents should take the opportunity to teach children about money and responsibility. Janet Bodnar, who writes an article in the Family Finance section for Kiplinger’s Personal Finance, says to make sure that the lessons you are teaching your child are age appropriate (Bodnar, 2015). In preschool, you can take the child to the dollar store to pick out something and they can see that you exchange cash for an item that you want/need (Bodnar, 2015). For Denise and Terrance Hill the age appropriate lesson was given to their three children in the form of an assignment; to research different banks and pick a bank that best fit their personal need (Brooks, 2016). The family was very open about the bills and the parents required that the children work for their wages, nothing was handed to them (Brooks, 2016). The children learned the value of money and to save for what they want. In an article, You’re Doing Allowance Wrong, the author pointed out that high school graduates will likely decide which college to attend to, and some colleges can cost five or six figures when it comes tuition, room and board. Because of that, it is in the best interest of the