Let your children play with the economy

It can be frustrating as a parent not to have cash on you when you want to give pocket money or similar. But there is a solution for the cashless family.

As a parent, you want to give your child the best tools to succeed in the future. But it can be hard to teach your children about finances and let them earn pocket money when everything is done on online banking or paid for with a credit card.

Remember when you were a kid and emptied the piggy bank just to see how much money was in it? You sat and talked to see if you could afford the latest toy craze. Something you didn't notice was that you learned to play with numbers and that gave you a better understanding of numbers. Because now you could visually see that two 5s actually added up to 10 crowns - so you were visually learning to work out that 5+5=10.

The problem with the new generation of children is that cash is not a given. Many families keep everything on debit cards and may have several of them to manage different accounts.

If you can relate to being a (nearly) cashless family, then these upcoming tips might be something for you and your family. Read further down the page.

Children can learn about economics at an early age by earning pocket money. Either just getting pocket money or by earning it.

Here are ideas for different household chores, divided by age:

From the time the child can walk and has an understanding, it can help at home. The easiest way to get children to help and want to do things at home is to make it fun. Children under 2 can help with setting the table, cooking or tidying up, but make it fun and playful. Older children will love that there is a reward for helping out, either in the form of pocket money, Friday sweets or saving up for an item or experience.

Remember that this list is only indicative. Some of the things children can do before the age listed and in other cases, such as ages 6-9, the child may not be able to master it until the child is closer to 9 than to 6.

The list is also only an inspiration for possible tasks for the child - this does not mean that the child has to do all the things.

Always keep an eye on your child when they are doing the more demanding tasks and join in the first few times to teach them how to do it.

What about the pocket money?

Now you've got the kids started on various small tasks in everyday life. But maybe they should get some pocket money for it? Help is at hand for the cash-strapped family. Because even the pocket money has gone digital.

What you can do with your pocket money varies according to the age of your child. Probably not many children get pocket money when they are aged 0-2. There, it is typically money from baptisms, birthdays or similar that gets put into the account. But from there it can be nice to be able to give a little pocket money or weekly allowance.

Alternative to money

Children today are often very spoiled and with good reason. Many people today have more money in their bank accounts than they did a few generations ago. But you can give your child an alternative to pocket money.

You may choose on Fridays to ask your child if he or she wants to have pocket money or whether it wants Friday candy. When choosing Friday candy, the child can then choose something for x number of crowns either in pre-mixed bags or in the way self-candy. If the child chooses the pocket candy, then fruit, smoothie or similar can be served instead for the Friday Disney Fun.

It may also be that your child has a great desire to be able to buy a particular toy - then the alternative may be that the money goes to the new toy or just to pocket money. The smart thing for the child in choosing the toy is that you as a parent choose x number of days the child must opt out of pocket money. But in relation to the price of the toy, the child will get more out of doing this than by spending his real pocket money. For example: your child gets 10 DKK every Friday and wants a car that costs 300 DKK. But instead of the child having to save up for 30 weeks, you choose to say that the child can choose between getting 10 kr. or getting a tick and thus be closer to getting the toy. However, it shouldn't be a pure gift shop - so be aware that what the child normally spends their pocket money on is then not an option in the coming week. It has to be a choice.

The last example can also be used as a candy or toy - so if the child chooses not to have the Friday candy, they get a cross instead and can have the toy. This is more challenging for the child, who probably wants both things very much.

Download a form from us, on which the child can draw the wishes, you can cut it from an advertisement or print it from the web. Then you and your child can find out more easily how far you have come towards the toy.

Apps

We can't escape the digital age - and our children are getting to know it long before we did. So of course you can get an app (actually several different ones) that takes care of all that pocket money stuff when you don't have the cash yourself.

ERNIT

With ERNIT, you can keep track of your pocket money and give your child tasks that they can see what they get for solving. The money is virtual, so it's up to you as a parent to move the money from your account to theirs. Otherwise, you have to act as the bank when the child wants to spend of their pocket money.

It is not necessary for the child to own a smartphone, but it is for just one of the parents. However, if your child is to be able to complete daily tasks, they should ideally be able to access the app during the day.

ERNIT has a very simple set-up, making it easy and manageable, so even the youngest can join in. Even those who can't read yet can benefit from this app. Children can see their pocket money account and how it is growing (if they are not using any of the money).

Your child can also make a goal e.g. save up for a Spiderman character. In the children's part of the app, your child can move the fictitious money around, such as moving the money earned to spending or to the desired goal. The child can then repay mum or dad when the money needs to be spent. 

We would recommend ERNIT from children get interested in numbers and money 4+

The app is available for both Android and iPhone.

MyMonii

With this app, your child can get tasks and your child can easily see what he or she gets for solving the task. 

MyMonii can be used in any family where just one parent has a smartphone. It is not necessary for the child to have their own smartphone, but it is handy if you need to give your child tasks during the day without you being home. 

MyMonii can also be used to pay in shops and thus also works as an ATM card for your child - however, this requires your child to have his/her own smartphone for it to be smart. 

At MyMonii, your child can keep track of how much money they've earned and thus how much money they have in their account. So we would recommend MyMonii for slightly older children from 8+

The app is available for both Android and iPhone. 

Garmin Vivofit JR

With this out, you can give the child tasks to solve and thus earn virtual coins. As a parent, you can then decide how these virtual coins are to be converted into real-world coins. It's all controlled from the parent's mobile device. 

When the child is active for more than 60 minutes, they trigger, among other things, an adventure trail and fun facts. This is a fun way to stay active and get moving for the minimum 60 minutes a day. This can be especially handy when children's lives change from nursery to school, where they need to be more sedentary. 

Garmin Vivofit JR is more for children who have learned to read a little, so the age 6+

The app is available for both Android and iPhone.