So I'm going to be honest, and just let you know that this topic often comes with heated and divided opinions. But I think it's so important to get it right. So I really want to talk about it money. The tricky thing is, is that not every kid who gets money is going to use it to buy drugs or alcohol. And while that's true, it's also true that there are kids who get cash or allowance and do use it to buy drugs or alcohol. I mean, think about this.
Every kid who doesn't have a job and who uses drugs or alcohol gets their money somewhere, right? Most of the time, it's from their parents. I'm not going to debate on whether or not kids should get an allowance Because ultimately, that's a parenting decision not a drug or alcohol prevention decision. However, I do want to talk about ways that you can make sure your kids aren't using the money you give them to buy things they shouldn't like drugs or alcohol. There are a few ways you can approach this. And really, it'll all boil down to personal choice and age of your kids.
One thing I can tell you though, is that anytime you give your kids cash, there's always going to be a possibility that they'll use it to buy drugs or alcohol. I mean, try to think about your own teenage years. I know we have all ourselves that or at least known people to use their lunch money or their allowance or even trick their parents into giving them money for something school related and then get a Bag of Weed Coke, ecstasy, pills, alcohol, whatever, right? So one approach is this. Don't do allowance. I know you may be thinking, well, how am I going to teach my kids about money then?
Well, you can be creative, maybe come up with a point system or Amazon credits. One family I know has points for chores and each point is worth $1 when they get to $20 they take their kitchen For whatever they want, another family I know does Amazon credit so instead of an allowance, they set up an Amazon account for their kids to load up in their Amazon cart with and then they load their Amazon cart with gift cards. And then the kids can spend the money on whatever they need to. If you feel like your child may need cash for going out with friends, like maybe food or they want to buy snacks after school or whatever, whatever it is, you would give them money for right buy them a prepaid Visa card or a munzo card. This way you can track their spending. And that goes without saying really about school lunches.
I think most schools have done away with cash anyway, but if your kids school still does cash then be sure to switch to the card payment for their lunches. Also, some kids get cash from their grandparents, or families or birthday or Christmas. You can either ask them to load it onto their cards instead. Or each time that happens. Just tell your kids that you need the cash and then load the money onto their carts for spending. Right?
You see, you can still teach your kids about money, and you're free to come up with whatever system works best for you and your family. But it does boil down to this. Don't give your kids cash.