I believe many times we don't emphasize enough how important it is to live within your limits and not to overspend. If we can teach children at an early age the value of money, then we will be teaching them how to become responsible individuals as they become adults. Having known some relatives who underwent bankruptcy, what my observation was that it wasn't necessarily the fact that they didn't have enough money, but rather a lack of money management. They overspent on their credit cards and bought much more than they could finally pay through installments. This could be a whole other discussion for a different time, but right now I'd like to focus on how we can teach our kids to be responsible with money so they don't end up being bankrupt themselves.

One fun activity to do with kids as well as teaching them monetary value is to use coupons. Yes, coupons. They are as close as your Sunday newspaper.
If you think cutting coupons in newspapers is boring, then let your kids do it! For kids it's so much fun that they will do the work for you!

So this is what you need:

• Scissors


• Baseball Album/Binder book to put the coupons.


• Sunday newspaper (or any other source of coupons)


• Small round label stickers


• Notepad - for jotting down your shopping list.

Step 1: If your kid is just learning to cut, you can show them how to cut coupons. Trust me, if they are young kids, anything they can cut/destroy and make a mess will be heaven for them.

Baby with coupons. Courtesy user CatherineBlair

Step 2: Categorize coupons, this will also help teach your kids how to organize. My suggestions for categorization are as follows: first by type, second by expiration date, and third by price. I find that it is best to put these coupons in a baseball card type album/binder (those with clear plastic page leaflets) so that you can quickly view all the coupons you need once you are in the store.

Step 3: Paginate the album. Since most baseball card type albums do not have page numbers, you can use small round label stickers to paginate the album.

Step 4: (optional) Add tabs in any way you choose, so you will be able to easily flip the pages to find the coupon you need.

Step 5: Create a list of all the products you need, jot them in the notebook and associate them with the coupons from the corresponding pages.

Step 6: Now you can teach them about money. Tell them the value of money. Tell them that a 50 cent coupon is equivalent to 50 cents of real money. Tell them that saving even a little bit of money will help them have more money for that special toy or for dessert at a restaurant. By teaching them the value of money, they will help them understand the value of coupons as an adult.

Step 7: As an added motivation (and for older kids), you may be able to motivate them by saying that with every 50 cents that they save, an equivalent (or lesser) amount will be added to their allowance. Kids really love it if they can see their piggy bank add up to reach that special goal of getting their favorite game.

Step 8: Go to the grocery store with your kids and make shopping fun. Let them find the products with coupons on the shelves like a matching game. If you have more than one kid and your spouse will be going to the grocery store with you, then you can even have a friendly competitive race to see who can find the items first by dividing up the coupons between the two teams.

Step 9: When all the shopping is done and you return home, you can show your family the receipt and show them how working together your whole family saved XX amount of dollars.

1. Showing them the value of money - A $1.00 coupon is the same as $1.00 in actual money.
2. Having to claim coupons before their expiration date shows kids not to procrastinate and to meet deadlines.
3. Coupon fine print - such as 2 maximum per customer (if they can't read, explain it to them) shows that everything has its limits.
4. Motor skills (for younger children) - Cutting coupons along the dotted line.
5. Organization and Sorting - By putting the coupons in their appropriate slot in the baseball card album.
6. Cooperation - Looking for coupons together.
7. Family time - Enjoying an interactive activity with your children.
8. Goal accomplishment - Deriving satisfaction from meeting a common goal.
9. And finally... teaching them the value of money, telling them that every bit counts and not to take it forgranted.">

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