Disney Dollar Allowance - $$/Age

[write2caro]

I want to start to teach my ds2 about the value of money (starting young!!). I was thinking that giving him some Disney Dollars for helping me do little things around the house could be a cool way to start. I'm wondering what some of your experiences are with this... how much you give to kids at what age... that sort of thing. Love to hear your ideas!

 

[MoeFam]

Hi-

We started this in an effort to get our kids geared up for Disney- but also avoid the sticker shock of spending all kinds of money on stuff at the parks.

We purchase Disney Dollars in groups of 20- all singles. Then we made little pockets out of cardstock for each child and decorated them with Disney stickers. We let our oldest (almost 4) choose different chores he wanted to help with ( setting and clearing the table, sorting laundry etc.) and for each chore he does he gets a Disney Dollar. Our youngest ( almost 2) pretty much gets one whenever her brother does! But she has since begun clearing her plate from the table and helping with putting forks and spoons in the dishwasher.

We do not reward the kids for tasks we expect from them- like brushing teeth etc. And we do not take Disney dollars away because of bad behavior- ours are purely tied to the chores they choose. If they do it - great- they get the dollar. If they dont- well, they know they will then have less to spend at Disney! That is just what has worked for our family.

Chores they can pick from are

Clearing their place at the table
Setting the table- mostly napkins for our 2 yr old- but the 4 yr old can do almost all of it.
Sorting Laundry
Folding socks and making pairs
Helping feed and water our dog

 

[MnJsMom]

We do ours like this:

Our DD (7) can earn $10 per week by
Going to sleep in her room without a fit (my DH used to work nights so she slept with me for a long time)
Keeping her room clean
Putting her clothes away
Unloading the Diswasher
Changing the trash

Our DS (3 1/2) can earn $5 per week by
Putting his toys away
Helping me switch clothes from the washer to the dryer
Keeping the bathroom floor free from clothes & towels by putting them in the hamper
Helping me feed the dogs

This applies all the time, it's just during our Disney planning there $ comes in the form of money on a Disney gift card.

 

[tinkermamaof2]

Our dd's were in grades 2 and 3 when we took them to Disney. They always do things to help around the house but we don't really give them an allowance as we usually buy them things for good behavior etc. My husband thought $60.00 was a good limit for each of them and they were quite happy. They didn't make their purchases until pretty much the day before we left and they were satisfied. We purchased t-shirts for them as those were things that I wanted them to have. All in all it worked out just fine.

 

[TiggerStac]

Ok..I'm feeling a little stingy w/my disney $$.

I have started a rewards chart w/DS, once he gets 5 stickers, he gets a Disney Dollar. He can get them for doing anything we ask him to around the house and for cooperating a bed time/getting dressed time, etc.

He is very excited and he is actually working on his math while doing this. He tells me how many more he needs for a $ and then if I tell him he'll get 2 stickers, he adds that to what he has.

 

[beattyfamily]

We've been giving our girls an allowance since age 5.

We give them $1. per year so my 7 year old gets $7 and my 10 year old gets $10 BUT right away we make them take half and put half if it in the bank and half goes to a charity or their choice.

So my 7 year old gets $3 and then $4. goes to bank/charity and my 10 year old gets $5 and $5. goes to bank/charity.

We do not tie their allowance into any chores. They have chores that are always expected and part of being a part of the family.

We do use the allowance as a 'threat' sometimes, but not often; if they are bad or misbehave they won't get their allowance but so far we've never had to take it away.

 

[SmallWorld71]

While it's never too early to start good habits, just remember at this age it's about quantity over value. For example, a 2 year old would pick 5 pennies over one quarter any day. (Or 5 $1Disney Dollars over one $10) When my kids were that age, I got them a fun bank to put coins in that they found or were given by me or someone else. They still collect money in the banks. Don't worry about trying to teach him the value of money, that won't come for a few years. Work on the put some of your money in the bank idea and by the time he is old enough to know how much $ he has, he'll have some good habits to go with his knowledge.

 

[PollyannaMom]

When we started DS's allowance (age 5, I think?) it was $1.41 per week - odd amount, I know, but it was one dollar, one quarter, one dime, one nickel, and one penny - so he could learn the names.

We didn't really tie it to Disney Dollars - our trip happened to be in May, so those came in Easter eggs that year.

I like the idea from another poster, too, of giving kids a certain amount for a charity they choose. I saw a bank in a catalog somewhere that looked like a block of buildings - toy store, bank, and church. It would be perfect.

 

[deedeetoo]

Wow I am feeling cheap. I have two kids dd8 and ds6. They each get $2/wk for setting the table, cleaning their rooms and helping with the laundry. What do your kids do with all that money each week?

My kids use their money to buy fun things for themselves. We buy clothes and pay for activities. If they want toys at times that are not birthday or Christmas then they have to save and buy them themselves. My dd also buys her own earrings with her allowance. They usually have to save several weeks to get something they want. We think this teaches them the discipline to save for something they want and also to understand the value of money.

In reponse to the OP, I'm not sure if your daughter will really understand much about money at age 2

 

[write2caro]

Thanks to everyone for some great ideas! I don't expect him to understand the value of money just yet (!!), but I do want to get some good habits started. He can already count a bit, and I could see using the idea that 5 stickers gets him $1, and saving all the dollars in a bank. Just that practice counting every day can't hurt! I like the idea of compelling good behavior this way in addition to using praise as we do (as he'll enjoy just the "game" aspect of it at first if not the rest). I love the idea of sharing with a charity, which I think he is very likely too young to do now, but I will incorporate this in the future. Thanks again for all your thoughts and great ideas!

 

[karibritt01]

We do $2 a week for helping out, picking up the den and playroom at night, and keeping their rooms clean (sort of!) They get real dollars, and keep it in a special bank just for Disney. Their Disney money only comes from their allowance - birthday, Christmas, etc money goes into another bank for college fund. If they want Disney money... they have to work for it! They can earn extra money for being very good, doing extra chores, etc. They do lose money at a quarter per offense when not listening, but I am a softie, and they always manage to "earn" it back! We take their cash and have it put to a gift card every so often - learned this after trying to keep up with money, change, etc last year! So far they have about $80 each. DD4 can hardly wait to buy the giant Stitch doll in DTD, and DS8 is planning to hit the Lego store!

 

[reelmom]

DS3 and DS4 get stickers for their Chore Chart. 10 stickers= $1.00
It has already started to instill the value of money and the importance of saving. We were at Wal-Mart the other day and DS3 wanted a toy. DS4 told him he had to do more chores and to save his money.

 

[alexy]

DD9 & DS10

Total of $10/week. $5 "allowance" + $5 for completing their chores. At the end of the month, they "owe" me $15 for their saving's account. If they don't do their chores, then they only get $5 spending money for the month. If they do their chores, they get $25.

We then let them spend their money as they see fit, with some guidance from mom and dad. My DS saved up to get himself a Gameboy DS and then some games, My DD spends a little bit every week or so - everything from gum to a white board for her bedroom.

As for Disney, during our last trip, we had them save $70 each and then gave it out in envelopes of $10/day. They could spend it all that day or save up for something big, but they couldn't spend it all on day 1.

 

[write2caro]

It has already started to instill the value of money and the importance of saving. We were at Wal-Mart the other day and DS3 wanted a toy. DS4 told him he had to do more chores and to save his money.

That's great to hear! Encouraging!

As for Disney, during our last trip, we had them save $70 each and then gave it out in envelopes of $10/day. They could spend it all that day or save up for something big, but they couldn't spend it all on day 1.

I'm going to have to save all of these ideas for when my kids get older - they're great!

Keep 'em coming!

 

[hematite153]

I have started a rewards chart w/DS, once he gets 5 stickers, he gets a Disney Dollar. He can get them for doing anything we ask him to around the house and for cooperating a bed time/getting dressed time, etc.

He is very excited and he is actually working on his math while doing this. He tells me how many more he needs for a $ and then if I tell him he'll get 2 stickers, he adds that to what he has.

Sounds like a great math game! As his math develops you can use different stickers with different values. (I.e. smiley faces are 5 for $1, stars are 4 for $1 and princesses are 3 for 1$.) Then you'll not only develop counting skills but also the connection between multiplication and fractions.

 

[write2caro]

I thought I'd post an update now that we have been doing this with our 2yo son for a while. I found a HUGE roll of 600 disney stickers for $6, perforated into sheets of 6 stickers each. I got an acrylic jar and we decorated it with some other Disney stickers - my son had fun with that! I put an index card on the fridge, and for each of his "designated good bahaviors" he gets to pick a sticker and put it on his card. Once the little panel of 6 stickers is empty and all on his card, he gets a Disney dollar to put in his jar.

HE HAS LOVED THIS, and the stickers really seem to motivate him to do those things that praise alone doesn't quite manage! He gets stickers for: getting himself dressed and undressed, putting his toys away at the end of the day, practicing his ABC's, practicing counting, and asking to have his diaper changed when he needs it (baby steps toward potty training!). He counts his stickers as we put them on, we count how many more he needs before he gets a dollar, and he has great fun with it and the results have been great so far.

When he talks about wanting something (like the shake n go Mater he just saw!) we say that maybe he can get that with his Disney dollars, and we talk about how many more he needs and what types of things he can do to get them. So far he understands the whole "chain of events" and it helps to encourage the behaviors we want to see more of. Hopefully we'll build on this as he gets older!

Thanks again to everyone for their suggestions.

 

[LuckyLabonte]

Hailey just turned three, and I want to start doing an allowance for her. We just haven't decided how much etc. I like the idea of doing $3 (for her age) and then maybe a quarter for certain jobs/chores.
She has 2 "banks" one that is decorated with Mickey stuff and the other is her piggy bank(that money goes into her savings acct.) Anytime her grandparents (or anyone else like us etc) give her $$ she gets to decide what bank it goes in. Its cute to see which one she chooses. She loves checking the couch at my parents house to see if my dad has *lost* any money. I swear I think they put it there on purpose.