allpiggybanks.com

Summer pocket money: holiday money-making ideas

The December 2009 issue of the Australian magazine “Money” has an article on how children can go about making pocket money over the long summer holidays:

http://money.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=986596

Piggy Bank That Lets You Save and Spend

One reason that many children (and adults!) dislike saving money is because it feels like you are stopping yourself from spending it on things you like.

This amazing new piggy bank may have the answer:

Whenever you deposit a coin, it will randomly place it in one of two compartments – one for spending, and another for long-term saving. You can remove the contents of each compartment separately. That way, when the spending compartment fills up, you are forced to buy yourself a reward.

Defeating Temptation: 10 Questions to Ask Yourself When You’re Tempted to Buy

The simplest way to save more money is to avoid buying things that you do not need. This is easier said than done – humans are creatures of emotion – the impulse to achieve gratification by getting something we want immdiately is very strong.

When we see a new mobile phone, MP3 player or other gadget on TV, you can’t help get excited by its novelty and appeal. It is a known fact that people who are hungry spend more money when they are out shopping compared to people who are full.

This article on Get Rich Slowly explains how to prevent yourself buying on impulse by asking yourself 10 objective questions to ensure that you are buying a product or service for the right reasons:

http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2009/03/16/defeating-temptation-10-questions-to-ask-yourself-when-youre-tempted-to-buy/

8 Fundamental Money Lessons for Kids

Guest blogger Kathryn wrote a great article on the blog “Million Dollar Journey”  that outlines 8 fundamental money lessons for children.

I consider her points about not saying “we can’t afford that”, letting children make mistakes and understanding compound interest to be very important and often understated:

http://www.milliondollarjourney.com/8-fundamental-money-lessons-for-kids.htm

5 Misconceptions Your Child Probably Has About Your Finances

When children are growing up, they learn a lot of their financial habits from observing their parents behaviour. For this reason, it is important for parents to be aware of the messages that they are sending to their children concerning money.

The blog “My Wife Quit Her Job” has a fantastic series of articles describing misconceptions that your child has about money:

http://mywifequitherjob.com/2008/11/01/5-misconceptions-your-child-probably-has-about-your-finances/

This blog has other interesting articles about kids and money here:

http://mywifequitherjob.com/teaching-kids-about-money/

10 Businesses You Can Start For Peanuts

The Wisdom Journal has published a great article with a list of 10 businesses that can be started with no (or little) money up front, by a single person working in their spare time. Here is the link:

http://www.thewisdomjournal.com/Blog/10-businesses-you-can-start-for-peanuts-or-less/

Fat Piggy Banks – 5 Ways to Make Yours Grow

How to Make Money As A Teen

Whilst browsing Instructables.com recently, I found this great post on various ways a teenager can make money:

How To Make Money – As a Teen – More DIY How To Projects

Teaching Children Financial Literacy using Piggy Banks

We live in a consumer-centric society. Wherever we look, we see an endless supply of gizmos, trinkets and nick nacks that we are repetitively told that we cannot live without.

Furthermore, banks and financial institutions are only to happy to give out magical plastic cards that allow us to run out and buy these things on impulse, and worry about paying for them in the future. Indeed, it has been reported that the average American family has $8000 in credit card debt.

More and more people agonise over how to teach today’s children the good old-time habits of earning and regularly putting aside money for the future. A piggy bank can serve as a great teaching tool.

• First impressions matter – piggy banks have a cute and friendly appearance that appeals to children more than a sterile-looking money box.
• They teach goal setting –  a child may choose to work buying something expensive like a bicycle or games console that would require saving for a prolonged period.
• They teach self-discipline – instead of squandering an allowance on cheap indulgences like candy bars, they can put away all or a portion of the money knowing that they able to get something far more substantial in the future.
• They teach patience – as the piggy bank fills up, the child can feel it getting heavier and they can shake it around to hear the clanging of the coins.

A Brief History of Piggy Banks

There are many stories about how piggy banks were invented.

Money boxes have existed as long as money has. People would keep gold or silver coins in vessels including jars, pots or kettles made of clay or metal.

In England, there existed a type of clay known as ‘pygg’, which was pronounced like the word ‘pug’ in modern-day English. Following the ‘Great Vowel Shift’, English pronunciation changed and the word came to sound exactly like the animal we call a pig.

Anyhow, the story goes that an English glazier was asked to make “pygg Jars”, but misunderstood the request and instead, created jars that were shaped like pigs. The customer liked the final product. News spread and the pig-shaped jars were widely imitated.