What I'm Teaching My 7-Year-Old About Money

Zeke, my oldest child, just turned 7! This past year, I’ve seen him come into his own. He knows what he likes and doesn’t like, and I’m learning to love it all! He loves basketball, baseball, legos, and any bug (the more potentially poisonous, the better).

One of the things we have been teaching him is how to budget his money for the things that are most important to him. For the past few years, he has been earning an allowance for a few extra chores around the house and getting some birthday money, which he saves in his wallet. Time flies, and the dollars add up! We take him to the store occasionally, and he bounces around from toy to toy, picking one and then another. Most often, he wants to buy whatever one he happens to be looking at at the moment. So, we have been working with him on slowing down, reviewing everything he can afford to buy, and then picking what he values most. It might be the 1st item he picked up, or it might be the last.

I think it’s important to learn to say no to one thing so you can say yes to something else. As you get older, the tradeoffs get bigger, and what you value most can take a backseat. For example, you may value a summer vacation more than many Christmas toys for the kids. But when Christmas rolls around, and summer vacation is out of sight, it’s difficult to muster the willpower to remind yourself what you value most.

Most recently, we had a family trip to California, and we surprised Zeke with a trip to Legoland for his birthday. At the exit to the park, there is a massive store where you can buy anything from a $5 thumb-size figure to a $2,000 lifesize Star Wars character. Zeke had $30, so his choices were limited. He had an excellent opportunity to practice this new skill. He went from shelf to shelf, picking up any Lego set he liked under $30 (the most common choice was a set for $29.99). He then laid them out and, one by one, put them back until he was left with the one he declared his favorite - a sweet Mandalorian spaceship!

**For those who have asked what Wyatt is learning…he’s learning that what’s mine is mine and that what’s Zeke is also mine. It’s all mine. Well…he’s two!

For more reading, see previous posts -

 “What I’m Teaching My 4-Year-Old About Money.”

“What I’m Teaching My 5-Year-Old About Money.”

“What I’m Teaching My 6-Year-Old About Money.”

Happy Planning,

Alex

This blog post is not advice. Please read disclaimers.