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CHILDREN & MONEY
Parenting Advice | Kid's allowances | Teaching money saving to kids | Teaching children about money | Ways for kids to make money
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Ways for kids to make money
Is your child asking for more allowance or do you want to teach him or her the value of money? Helping your child start his own business is an excellent way to teach life skills that will last forever. Depending on the age of your child, you can be a large or small part of the business venture. Some children are more business minded than others and won't need as much help. Let them choose what they want to do to earn money and then support them. This is a good time for them to learn about making good choices and the occasional failure can be a good lesson. This old standby is an excellent way for children of any age to make money. Location is the main concern, you need to be positioned where lots of thirsty people will be coming by. One good idea is to set up at annual marathons or along bike tour routes. And don't forget to advertise! Figure out the cost of one pitcher of lemonade and then divide it by the number of glasses you can fill from that. This is your cost per glass. Add a reasonable amount of profit and get selling! Dog Walking This is generally a better job for older children. Make up some fliers advertising your services and tuck them into mailboxes up and down the street. Try to avoid scheduling more than one dog at a time, since they can get to be a handful.
My little sister goes down to the market every Saturday and sells out of four dozen chocolate chip oatmeal cookies. The key to this business is yummy cookies, so pick a recipe that everyone likes and go with that. Also, when people see you regularly, they will become regular customers. If there isn't a proper venue that you can walk through, try selling in the local park or team up with a lemonade stand. Another idea is to go door to door with samples and a flier to leave with each person and become a delivery service. This can always be expanded to other baked goods as well, but start fairly small to keep costs down.
Pick a subject that you know a lot about or are very interested in. Something like LEGO or baking, etc. Now start a newsletter. It can begin as two sides of a piece of paper and expand later. Charge enough to cover the cost of paper, stamps if mailing, and your time. Now to sell it. You can sell on the street, at a club if it's on a club topic, or go into a bookstore and see if they will carry it.
For this job, you will need a squeegee, a bucket and a good window cleaner. Make up fliers and go door to door letting people know about your service. You can also try local businesses that have storefront windows. Build up a customer base and schedule window cleanings once a month for each of them.
This is also a good one for older children. Practice on your own house first (Mom will be thrilled!). Make sure you dust, get any cobwebs, scrub toilets, tubs, sinks, etc. Once you have some experience, hit the street with the fliers again. You can also run up an ad in the paper, but this can get expensive.
If you are too young to actually baby-sit, consider being a mother's helper. This means that you entertain the kids while the mother gets some work done elsewhere. You will get experience and someone is there if you need help. You can also offer to look after children in the playground, while their mother shops. Start out with people you know and let your parents screen any that you don't.
Notice any shabby fences in your neighborhood? Why not offer to paint them? The owner buys the paint and brushes and you charge for your labor. If there is peeling paint still on the fence, make sure you scrape all the loose flakes off first or the end result will look awful!
If you know of someone going on a trip soon, offer to water their plants for a minimal fee. Make sure you learn which plants need to be watered daily and which prefer to stay dryer. And don't over water or they could return to a house full of dead plants!
Someone leaving on a trip might also need you to look after their animals. They should show you where the pet food is and how much to feed each day. For dogs, you will need to walk them and spend some time playing. And don't forget to let them out to go to the bathroom!
Like getting wet? This is the job for you! You can put up a sign and wash cars in your own driveway or go knocking on doors offering to wash people's cars. You will need soap and a hose, a sponge and lots of rags. A scrub brush is good for getting the wheels clean.
The next time it snows heavily in your area, go around to all the senior citizens in the area and offer to shovel their driveways for a fee. Many will be happy to take advantage of your services and you can rack up a lot of money in just a couple days. Be prepared for hard work though.
Place an ad in the paper or go door to door for this one. You can offer to clean up branches, mow the lawn, weed flowerbeds and gardens and water the yard. Many people find this a dull chore and you can cash in on it!
This is only for the very responsible. Advertise in the paper that you will provide wake up calls with the customer's choice of today's weather, top news, or saying of the day. You can vary the options of course. Keep a careful record of each client's preferences and wake up times. You will need to scan a local paper before making the calls to get the headlines and weather.
Do you have lots of old toys that you don't need anymore? Rent them out to families with children who are bored of their toys, or to grandparents who have children visiting. You can rent by the day, week, or month. You might consider a package deal for smaller toys. Keep careful track of who has what.
If you enjoy baking, you can start making muffins and offer samples to people in your neighborhood. Offer to provide breakfast (muffins and orange juice) delivered to their door on specified mornings. Give out fliers so they can take advantage of the offer later if they want to.
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