How do they do it?

[NewRVLady]

It must be all where you live. Kids with jobs were few and far between when I grew up. You kind of felt sorry for the kids who couldn't hang out because they had to work.

We live in an academically driven area. Last poll of the town showed that the majority of residents not only have college degrees, but also graduate degrees. Most of the kids my kids hang out with have parents with the same focus, school and extras come before a high school job.

And we must live in an alternate universe because you just don't see the kids sitting in the basement playing video games when there is no job in the summer. I am sure there are some, but it is not the norm. If they are not at sports/extras, they are forever going swimming, working out at the rec center, or lately, have developed a weird obsession with bowling.


Leaves very, very little time for a job if he still wants to have some sort of childhood.

And frankly, we are selfish too. We happen to like to do weekend family activities. Summer jobs get in the way of our family time. Our kid had to work over the 4th of July weekend. Really put a damper on our long weekend plans.

I agree with you-this is how our world was back in those days

Us too on weekends ! we would go to the lake with our boat -each could bring a friend -many weekends in summer-swim, fish , ski etc

 

[Hrhpd]

Like the nursing homes, child care centers are willing to work with teens. I work for a preschool that is open from 6:30 am-6:30 pm. We hire teens to come in and work for us after school for a few hours during the week so our full-time early morning staff can leave earlier to spend late afternoons and evenings with their families. It pays pretty well too. This is a great job for anyone thinking about teaching or childcare. We have a summer camp program during the summer months for children ages 5-12. We hire teens to come in and help us on field trip days and swimming pool days because we need the extra eyes and ears. The little kids love having the teens around!!

Wouldn't work around here due to certification requirements to work at a licensed daycare facility. Not an option for teens here.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

It must be all where you live. Kids with jobs were few and far between when I grew up. You kind of felt sorry for the kids who couldn't hang out because they had to work.

Meh, my friends & I all had plenty of time to hang out in the Summer. None of us worked more than 40 hours & with no school in session that left PLENTY of time for recreation.

And yes, every place is different. I had the luxury of working at 2 tourist driven places (Six Flags & Meramec Caverns) that employ teens heavily amongst their staff. I also did farm work & construction work in the Summer. While in college, I worked at a ski resort on weekends, drove a truck, worked at an auto auction, retail, delivered pizza, and a couple other things.

We now live in a very academically driven area. Last poll of the town showed that the majority of residents not only have college degrees, but also graduate degrees. Most of the kids my kids hang out with have parents with the same focus, school and extras come before a high school job. It is just the culture around here. It is not wrong, right, just different.

Sounds a little weird, frankly. The majority of the adults have at least a college degree & none of the kids work? Do you just not have restaurants, factories, grocery stores, or any of the hundreds of other blue-collar jobs common to pretty much every town/city in America?

My HS kid does have a summer job. But as I said, we are highly encouraging him to give his 2 weeks notice.

And again, that's a whole lot different from saying "kids don't work around here".

And frankly, a good part of it is that we are selfish. We happen to like to do weekend family activities. Summer jobs get in the way of our family time. Our kid had to work over the 4th of July weekend. Really put a damper on our long weekend plans.

Every family is different, but my friends & I had pretty much moved past hanging out with our parents by the time we turned 16. So, Summer jobs didn't really interfere with anything family-wise.

 

[Colleen27]

How can admissions really know that? Unless you are from a large city how can you understand what it's like if you are the admissions counselor in a small place. Vice Versa do we expect someone from a large city to understand the small town politics sometimes of a child getting a job. They are going to look at what is on the application. No one is going to sit back and say uhhhh it's a small town and this child didn't work because it was difficult to get a job. I know it's harsh but it's the truth.

I know it is, but I can't help but think it sucks. Our kids are expected to go to school, have enough extracurriculars to show they're well-rounded, volunteer to demonstrate character, and work too... and that's just to get into the school of their choice, not even to get scholarships! Both of my older kids regularly put in 10+ hour days between school, homework, and activities, and it is rather a kick in the teeth to read that without adding a job on top of all of that they'll be at a disadvantage when applying to selective schools (which will really only matter to DD, DS is pretty sure he's trade school bound).

My child works because I want her to understand what work is. I do not want an entitled child that gets everything paid for and graduates from a great university but then does not now how to take care of herself. My Mother was in admissions in a good solid University. I have heard some stories. I think every high school person should have some job at least in the summer. There ARE jobs, they just might be not a necessarily fun thing. I refuse to believe if your child has all of these contacts through her activities she can find SOMETHING of a job. At the very least babysitting? What about Camp Counselor, swimming guard, landscaper, restaurant etc. When I was 17 I worked at my church making dinner for the priest. Get creative you can find something. I once got paid to do laundry and walk dogs.

I don't think kids who don't work as teens are destined to become entitled brats or unable to care for themselves when they leave the nest. That's an issue that goes much deeper, IMO. But it honestly wouldn't have crossed my mind to put things like babysitting and yard work on a college app. That, to me, feels like a SAHM itemizing all her household management skills on a resume... Forced padding to make up for a lack of substance rather than anything indicative of true experience, achievement, or skills.

As far as whether there are jobs, that's another truly regional thing. There's not a huge market for dog walkers, housesitters, cooking, yard help, etc. in our community, median income $39K. People do those things themselves, count on family, or do without. And a surprising number of jobs that were mostly staffed by teens when I was a kid are closed to minors now. Our town recently eliminated lifeguards thanks to budget cuts, but last year the help-wanted ad specified 18+. Places that serve alcohol (which is pretty much every restaurant in our town other than McDs and DQ) have started requesting 18+ even for busboys and dishwashers. Anything that involves tools, driving, or caretaking does the same, I assume for liability reasons?

The kids whose pretend apps we were looking at did all the above, multisports and pt job. One student did put that he babysit his siblings after school and the admissions people said that helped with his app, so they knew what he was doing with his time. It showed responsibility. He also took AP classes. He was the one our group waitlisted. They said they would rather see volunteer work than no work. They also said they prefer to see longevity in activities, not quantity. Like dont do yearbook for a year, than the paper etc, from sophomore year on they should have one activity that they are dedicated to, now that doesnt mean they cant enjoy other things but they wanted to see them progressing in one of them. I found the seminar fascinating.

I would have too. Good information to know because I wouldn't even have thought to tell DD to mention babysitting or other work within our family on an application because that's just something I assume all kids do. Both my older kids work for FIL, who is a fishing guide, during the summers, washing his boat and gear. But I've never considered that a job because there's no schedule and no real obligation - he doesn't care when they come, as long as some time between when he comes in off the water and dark the boat gets cleaned and prepped for the next morning. But it does pay them enough that they can budget their own spending money through the school year so I guess it is a job of sorts.

It is nice to hear that longevity in activities counts for something. DD is now a volunteer/leader's helper in a 4H garden program that she started out as a participant in when she was in kindergarten, and is starting to narrow her sports dabbling to a couple that she really enjoys. She's a kid who wants to try everything but got that out of her system early and is starting to narrow her focus now as she looks ahead to high school and college.

Where I live, the rate of pay is also pretty high for teens. They can make between 9 and 12 dollars an hour, depending on the job.

Nice. A lot of adults in my community don't earn that! That would certainly make some sacrifices for the sake of work more attractive. Most teen jobs in my area pay minimum wage ($7.40) or a bit less (ie cash work like babysitting).

And frankly, a good part of it is that we are selfish. We happen to like to do weekend family activities. Summer jobs get in the way of our family time. Our kid had to work over the 4th of July weekend. Really put a damper on our long weekend plans.

That's part of it for me as well. We're fortunate - our 16yo still mostly likes hanging out with us and wants to be part of family vacations. He has very little free time between school, band, and football, however. His summer vacation this year was two non-consecutive weeks without football (the rest of the summer is two-a-day speed training and weights, Mon-Fri) and a job would seriously eat into our ability to spend that time as a family. It has gotten so crazy since he started high school that we aren't even going to spend our whole travel budget this year; we just don't have enough time when we can go away together any more!

 

[Colleen27]

Sounds a little weird, frankly. The majority of the adults have at least a college degree & none of the kids work? Do you just not have restaurants, factories, grocery stores, or any of the hundreds of other blue-collar jobs common to pretty much every town/city in America?

We have them, but they don't hire kids. Factories, any place that sells alcohol or tobacco, and any driving jobs have a standard requirement of 18+. In a small town without a mall or specialty retail that rules out the majority of available jobs.

 

[Pixiedustaway]

I'm wondering how people are adding an underage (under 25) driver to their insurance and not doubling it? Everyone I know has had their insurance double -- at least -- when their child gets their license. And if $40 a month IS doubling your insurance, for Pete's sake where do you live that car insurance is so cheap?

Hahahahah. That was my first thought too. Insurance around here would about triple if we added our under 25 y/o to it. (my kids are 6 and 4 so this is a ways off...)

I think we were all added under my dads until we had to pay our own.

 

[MissManda]

My HS kid does have a summer job. But as I said, we are highly encouraging him to give his 2 weeks notice.

He swims from 6am - 8am M-F for swim team. 8:30-11 M-F, lifting and speed/agility drills for HS football. Football again in the afternoons. Saturdays are swim meets. The football team does a ton of community service, so he has those commitments, not to mention the community service requirements to keep his NHS membership. He also has AP summer homework that needs to be worked on.

Leaves very, very little time for a job if he still wants to have some sort of childhood.

And frankly, a good part of it is that we are selfish. We happen to like to do weekend family activities. Summer jobs get in the way of our family time. Our kid had to work over the 4th of July weekend. Really put a damper on our long weekend plans.

I agree with a lot of what you are saying.

My 16yo would actually love to get a summer job, but it just didn't work out this summer. For one, its hard in our area for teens to find jobs. They are competing with the adults who can work whenever, they are competing with the college kids who came home for the summer (and got home before HS let out). There just isn't much here. He does odd jobs like house sitting, helping people move, but that's about it. Also, since he does not have a car and both my husband and I work full time it would be really hard for him to get back and forth to a job. I can't justify leaving my work and taking time to shuttle him around to a job. I do enough of that already with school activities. (that is why we would have to buy him a car first and then the job would come second if he were to get one).

Plus, kids that are heavily involved in school usually aren't free the whole summer. Even though football doesn't start officially until August, there is conditioning that goes on all summer long. He has ROTC commitments. On top of that he is taking online summer school courses and he has his summer AP assignments to finish up. Kids stay busy during the summer. Much more so than when I was in school.

Just like you, I want him to have time to be a kid and enjoy these years. I also don't want a summer job to interfere with family time. In a few years he will be going to college and after that he plans a military career. So I know our time with him is limited and I'm not ready to give that up yet.

I'm okay with paying his way for a little while. I don't think he's going to be spoiled or not have an understanding of what work is really like just because I do so.

 

[Mickeyluver37]

We have a 16yo that recently got his license and now we are looking for a car for him. At first, I had made up my mind that if he wanted a car, he was going to have to work to pay for it. However, that is not what is going to happen, for several reasons.

Mainly, he is very involved in after school activities, which I think are important. When I was his age, I went to school and worked. I wasn't invovled at all in any sports or after school activities. I feel like I missed out on a lot of fun high school memory making moments because all I did was school and work. I see how important those activities are to him. I don't want him to miss out. It would be difficult to fit in a job that would work around his school hours and give him time during the year to get homework done. He does do "odd jobs" for friends and neighbors and they pay him a little something. He's helped a few people move this summer and earned some cash and he house sits for people when they go on vacation. So he does what he can to get himself some spending money on his own.

Our agreement with him is that we will count his extra curricular activities as his "job". He also has chores that he has to do around the house that he is "paid" for. As long as he keeps those up, we will buy him a car (a reasonably priced used car...nothing brand new) and we will pay his car insurance.

Due to his good grades and other discounts, insurance didn't go up as much as I thought it would. He did get one really good discount that he gets to keep until he is 25 or until he gets a ticket or in an accident. He has been warned that if he does anything to lose his discounts he will be at a minimum paying the difference on the insurance, if not all of it. If he drops his school activities, that will count as losing his "job" and he will then have to get an actual job to pay for his car or we will sell it.

Its not how I originally envisioned this happening, but for us this is what is working. Honestly, him having a car will help me out tremendously. I was constantly running him back and forth and it was taking up a lot of my time. I recently found out that I was having a baby (yes, I will have a 17 yo and an infant at the same time....crazy) and just this week my dad was diagnosed with cancer. So, life is pretty crazy right now. Anything that cuts back on my running and stress is really helpful. Also, he plans to go to a military college and won't be allowed to have a car at all (except maybe his senior year). So the plan is for him to use the car his Junior and Senior year in high school. Then we will use it as an extra car when he is away at school. So, after a couple of years it will be for our use as well.

I could have written a lot of the same things. DD17 already helps out tremendously with her little brother now- it would not make sense for me to force her to get a job and potentially have to pay for after school care. She is also heavily involved in extra-curriculars, and luckily between her and DS14 who is sports intensive, one of them can usually be home after school. I NEED her to drive this school year so I'm not dealing with working, rushing to get an infant from daycare, and having to deal with carpools. We already have 3 cars so it's just sitting in the driveway waiting for her to get her license. The car is already paid for and we will cover gas and insurance at least until she graduates.