Weekly savings plan..jars or online banking?

[micah_mae_]

So I decided to give my kids $10/year on their birthday every year to put in savings. I want to put some aside weekly to "catch up" on the years we missed so my 4 yo has a "jar" that will have $150 by his birthday to put in savings. My 2 yo will have $60. I'm also doing a similar thing to save $1500 by the end of the year. 

I'm starting to work with my 4 yo on money and value and savings and such but..he's 4, lol. It would be easier to just make an ING account for each of us and do an automatic withdrawal but I know there can be some educational value to watching it add up in a jar. What do y'all think? Jars or online?

[avismama24]

Hmmm.....good question? I personally do on-line savings accounts, one for my husband and I and one for my son. It just seems easier for me to transher $5 or 10 bucks to each account every time I go on-line to check my balance then to put aside $100 a month for my son and $300 for DH and I....this is weird I know since money is money

I think it is important for kids to think through money though...DS is only one so right now it is not really relevant. We are radical unschoolers by nature ( we don't implement it a ton as DS is pretty little) but we plan to give him an allowance , not for doing family "chores" but simply as a way for him to save and budget for things he wants, whether that be candy or a stamp collection....just a thought. I know many families do not value allowances, but if you do that is another way to teach the value of money.

[micah_mae_]

We plan on doing an allowance once they turn 5 and spend the year from 4-5 learning coin recognition and early math/counting type stuff so they "get" it more. DS1 turns 5 this year so maybe it'll be a good year to show him his money adding up in the jar...

Ok I think I'll do our family "jar" savings online and the kids in jars and deposit them on their birthdays..

[lilacvioletiris]

I like the family "jars" online and the kids jars in a real see through jar so kids can see the money add up - I would even suggest using pennies or nickles since that takes up more volume in the jar so the young person sees the level go up and then deposit once a year on their birthday or every six months on their day of the month they would have been born.

Kids need to see that amount increase.  I also plan to pay my kids for the work they do- no allowance - I work to get money, I want them to understand if they work more, they make more. There are some things that my kids will do, just because they are part of the family, but if there is something over and above then they will be paid for it, just like us adults are paid to work.  I want them to appreciate the money more and not see me as an ATM.

[micah_mae_]

Thats the same thought process we have about allowance, some things you just do and extra chores will be given a dollar amount for anyone who does them.

[crunchy_mommy]

We do online savings for ourselves but my 3yo (almost 4) decided on his own to start saving money too and he is using a jar-type bank to keep his savings. Really, I probably wouldn't give a 4yo a jar with $150 in it... in our house he's likely to decide to crumple up the bills or hide them or something lol! The jar he has is strictly for small savings -- the coins he finds behind the sofa or on the sidewalk, spare change I might toss his way for whatever reason, etc. He is saving up for a few specific things (including a bowl of ice cream at the store down the street) and none are more than a couple of bucks. So for us this is the perfect way to help him start understanding money while keeping risks pretty low.

We don't have a separate savings account for DS because we don't have the money for that right now, though I do keep cash gifts he occasionally receives in a separate compartment of my wallet. Anyway, in your situation, I'd consider doing both -- make an online savings account for him for that $150+ and that can be his long-term savings... but also give him a jar where he can keep small amounts (I'm thinking under $10) that he can save/spend a little more freely. Once he gets really good at understanding money concepts & basic math, then I'd start to trust him with a bit more money...

[micah_mae_]

Originally Posted by crunchy_mommy 

We do online savings for ourselves but my 3yo (almost 4) decided on his own to start saving money too and he is using a jar-type bank to keep his savings. Really, I probably wouldn't give a 4yo a jar with $150 in it... in our house he's likely to decide to crumple up the bills or hide them or something lol! The jar he has is strictly for small savings -- the coins he finds behind the sofa or on the sidewalk, spare change I might toss his way for whatever reason, etc. He is saving up for a few specific things (including a bowl of ice cream at the store down the street) and none are more than a couple of bucks. So for us this is the perfect way to help him start understanding money while keeping risks pretty low.

We don't have a separate savings account for DS because we don't have the money for that right now, though I do keep cash gifts he occasionally receives in a separate compartment of my wallet. Anyway, in your situation, I'd consider doing both -- make an online savings account for him for that $150+ and that can be his long-term savings... but also give him a jar where he can keep small amounts (I'm thinking under $10) that he can save/spend a little more freely. Once he gets really good at understanding money concepts & basic math, then I'd start to trust him with a bit more money...

Oh we weren't going to give him the jar, lol. The idea was that the jars would be in a central location where we would get them out to deposit money and talk about how it's adding up (then put them back up safely) and then on their birthdays take the cash to the bank to deposit it together..

[crunchy_mommy]

Originally Posted by micah_mae_ 

Oh we weren't going to give him the jar, lol. The idea was that the jars would be in a central location where we would get them out to deposit money and talk about how it's adding up (then put them back up safely) and then on their birthdays take the cash to the bank to deposit it together..

Ahhhh LOL OK I feel better, thinking mine was the only 4yo who couldn't be trusted with a jar full of money!! Sounds like a good plan. Another option if you prefer to do the online route would be to use play money, or even make a chart (the thermometer kind where you fill in with red as you accumulate money toward your goal). I have an aversion to cash for some reason lol.

[micah_mae_]

Originally Posted by crunchy_mommy 


Ahhhh LOL OK I feel better, thinking mine was the only 4yo who couldn't be trusted with a jar full of money!! Sounds like a good plan. Another option if you prefer to do the online route would be to use play money, or even make a chart (the thermometer kind where you fill in with red as you accumulate money toward your goal). I have an aversion to cash for some reason lol.

Those are good ideas too, thanks!