Birthday money

[lau86]

My son has been given £100 for his birthday from family, he also has a £20 smiths voucher. I've always just put his money in his bank but hubby wants to ask him if he wants to spend it. He is planning on taking him to the toy shop and asking him IF he wants to spend it and discussing if he spend it there's no more etc or if he wants to save it for something later. My son is 6 now so Hopefully will understand this.
I would really rather just put the money in the bank but am I being a mean mummy? My son has everything he wants and has not asked for anything, he has his new birthday presents. What would you do?

 

[george83]

We've started letting ds1 - who is also 6 - spend his money when he gets some but I wouldn't let him spend a whole £100. We take ds1 to somewhere like toys r us and let him pick something but if it's not a sensible thing we will try to talk him out of it. I think this year he spent his money on a swingball set which in my opinion was better than wasting it on toy figures etc.

I think it's good for them to start buying things to learn the value of money but equally that can come from spending change in a pound shop each week

 

[MindUtopia]

I would offer to let him spent some of it on something of his choosing if you want, but not specify the amount. Personally, I think £100 is a lot to just get to go crazy with at that age. If he is anything like mine he has more than enough toys already! Actually I would perhaps encourage him to spend it on something other than toys (lessons, some sort of experience, a day out, clothes, etc.) rather than toys. I think encouraging him to take some responsibility for his own money is good but taking him straight to the toy shop is a bit baiting. It doesn't give him the chance to think about spending it on something else or saving it (who's going to save it when standing in the middle of a toy shop?).

 

[lau86]

Exactly. We've agreed he can have £20 and his vouchers. Hubby wants to let him learn that lesson of 'well now you've spent it there's no more' but I think that's harsh for a 6 yr old

 

[Zephram]

I also wouldn't give a 6 year old that much money to spend. 20 pounds sounds reasonable to teach him about the value of money and toys he wants. I think it's more important to encourage saving and I would take him to the bank with me to deposit the money and teach him that way.

 

[Berri]

Teaching kids about money is vital! If my 5yo is given more than $30, he saves half in his big piggy bank (to "buy his own house or pet snake" etc.), uses the other half to buy something he wants and any change goes in in a small piggy bank that he uses to buy things like matchbox cars.

My 3yo saves most of his money in his big piggy bank, mostly because there's nothing he wants to buy! He's easily pleased.

I'm not personally convinced "if you spend it now, it's all gone" is an effective strategy for learning about money - doesn't really reward good behaviour. Whereas if he saves a few times and then can afford something bigger, better later, the value of saving will be clear to him plus he will be in the habit of automatically putting money aside.

 

[sabby52]

We have always let them have some of their birthday money and the rest is saved, last year my son got around £150, he took the £50 to spend and the rest was put into his bank. My son knows he has his bank account and he knows its his money so if he ever wants anything (within reason) he can go get some money. This year we have asked people to give him $$ instead of ££ as he is saving to have some spending money on his holiday.

 

[Bevziibubble]

We let DD spend some and save the rest. We used to just put it all in her bank but now she's getting older we let her spend some and save the rest as I think it helps them to practise good money management skills from a young age

 

[Wobbles]

I've let mine spend their pennies.

Is there anything he wants like a scooter for example ... he doesn't understand the value of money but will understand going to spend his birthday money!

 

[c1403]

Mine just turned 5 and 3 and they got some money. TBH I have just kept hold of it, they get everything they want most of the time so the money will be used for days out, memberships to the farm etc. Maybe next year I'll let them pick out a toy but they got so much this year (birthdays are days apart) that anything they chose now would just be for the sake of it.

 

[lau86]

I think hubby just thinks saving is pointless as 'it's not going to be worth that amount in years to come'. But he has around £1500 saved from saving small amounts regularly so it's not a small amount

 

[Rags]

I let Ds spend half and save half, and have been doing this since he was 3. On the first occasion I took him to the toy shop and we went around and he put everything he would like into the trolley in the understanding that we would then decide which he would in fact buy. He understood very well and chose two items adding up to his budget and then we went back around and put everything else back on the shelves, paid for his gifts and then went to lunch. It was a lovely day and he's asked to do it every year since (he's 7 now).