Allowances

We live in a consumer society. One responsibility we have is to teach our children how to use money. It is often necessary to let them learn from their own mistakes, which means we must often bite our tongues:

• With due consideration for the family's budget and value system, some of the child's allowance should be for his or her discretionary spending alone. An allowance is not a salary. It's a share of a family's income. That doesn't mean that children shouldn't be expected to pay for certain items with it. It does mean that a child's behavior should not determine whether he or she gets an allowance.

• Decide before you start paying the allowance just what it's to be used for. Also, make it clear if some or all of the money is given in return for chores. Keep track of the money a child spends for a few weeks before his or her allowance is due to start to help you decide how much to give.

• Take into account how much other kids who are your children's age are given. It's as bad to give far too much as it is to give a sum grossly under what the others have.

• And finally, remember that money gives children some power over their environment, just as it does for adults. This power needs to be exercised if it's to be perfected.

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