ThreeJars.com Review – Money Management for Kids
Growing up in an 8 member family, my parents had to be extremely frugal with their money. The clothes I wore in school were worn by my two older sisters before me. My parents did a great job stretching the dollar, but never sat down with us to teach us about Money Management. By the time I had my own full time job, I went a little spend crazy. I made a lot of careless mistakes that I am still paying for today because I wanted all the stuff I couldn’t get growing up. I learned about Money Management the hard way.
Especially in today’s financial challenges, its more important than ever to raise a financially responsible child. I realize that though I cannot prevent my sons from making some mistakes, I can help teach them the tools and skills necessary to avoid the big ones.
Being responsible with money means to live within one’s means: More money has to come in than go out. It seems simple, but it only sticks when it is personally experienced.
My kids have their piggy banks but I know that’s not enough. Banks are even adjusting to this new demand by encouraging parents to open up Bank accounts for their kids. I see the ads everywhere. The problem with bank accounts is that the money goes in but children don’t get the opportunity to really make any decisions.
18?24 year?olds represent the fastest growing age group filing for personal bankruptcy.
That statistic alarmed me when I first read it. It really imprinted in my mind, the important role I had as a parent in helping my sons become financially responsible.
That’s why I’m happy ThreeJars.com exists.
ThreeJars has been specifically designed to maximize your child’s learning about money. What I really like about ThreeJars is how it empowers kids to make smart decisions with money. Experience is really the best way to learn and this online tool helps kids learn the safe way.
How it works:
- Kid and Parent sets up an account with ThreeJars.
- Parents set their allowance amount and frequency.*
- Your child then has 3 options; Spend, Save, Share
*ThreeJars is not a bank. They do not hold the money but merely track how much kids have earned through their online tools.
SAVE
I thought this was so cool. Here is where kids can learn about high-yield interest accounts, bonds, certificate of deposits and more. Teaching kids how their money can work for them is a great way to reinforce positive money habits. What I really enjoyed was how the longer kids leave their money in, the more interest they earn. An early withdrawal means no interest, just like real life.
If your kids need to make a little extra money, they can choose extra projects to perform and set the requested amount they wish to make. Of course, it always has to be approved by the Parent first.
Jeffrey has a hard time understanding the value of money. He’s only 4 but its never too early to learn. With ThreeJars’ money management system, kids could set up a savings goal for something that they wish to buy. If you have a child who has a “buy me” now attitude, this might help them understand how to control their instant gratification desires.
SPEND
Here is where kids can ask for either a cash withdrawal or for a gift card from a wide variety of stores. If the parent approves, they either pay their child with cash or buy a gift card online.
SHARE
Where you child learns to share and makes donation requests. I thought this tool was an amazing way to increase awareness and the importance of giving back.
I think the BEST part of this online money management tool are the conversations I know it will spark with my children. I truly believe it will be a big help in creating ownership, accountability and financial responsibility in my children.
I was given a free trial access to this service for conducting this review.
I am always impressed when I hear of people who live in families with numbers such as 8! I don’t blame you for taking notice when you suddenly had money all for yourself. That’s great that you are taking the proper steps to raising financially responsible children.
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I like the sound of this tool. My Buggy girl is 5 but, as you pointed out, they need to start learning at some point. she has a piggy bank but what does that really mean? Sometimes I give her a small amount of money when we are going to the store. That way we can have discussions about amounts and value.
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You’ll have to share some of those conversations as they get older!
It sounds like a pretty good program. We have been trying to teach our kids but we never have enough time to really get them to understand. Plus, they are still young. I like this though, very good info!
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It sounds like a pretty good program. We have been trying to teach our kids but we never have enough time to really get them to understand. Plus, they are still young. I like this though, very good info!
Whiney Momma´s last blog ..Some people have NO tact!
BTW I love your blog!
It’s a quite good program. The best part is every one likes making money and kids too. So if they start sooner, its more better.
Hi Maria,
I feel the same about people growing up in a big family.
I grew up in a 7. I am the middle kid – Sandwich but proud and both my mom and dad worked so hard to give us what we needed.
I hated it and only when I grew up I learned to appreciate them for surviving financially.
Lucky me, My dad was the person who taught me the biggest and best financial lessons in life:
Do not spend what you do not have.
Work for your money and do not expect it to fall from the sky.
Never use the credit card because you are renting money.
have an expenses book – people do not know where the money goes and they can’t argue with the expense book.
Always have some extra for a rainy day.
1 cent + 1 cent + 1 cent…. is lots of money.
Interest is not for math lesson only. Study it!
He was a simple man, working for a salary but was very wise. I told my kids that I hope to pass on his wisdom to them too. I think it is working. My daughter is 20 years old and she has about 40k in savings.
I like this tool but rather use the real piggy bank so the kids can see it is not a “rumor”
Happy Parenting
Ronit
Family Matters
I think it is never to early to teach kids about financial planning and money management. This will provide them with the right foundation to be financially stable later in life.
My parents opened up a savings account for us when we were 12 to help teach us how to save money.
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I teach my kids to save half of their allowance and we open a savings account for them when they turn 12.
Safe Banks´s last blog ..Comparing Checking Accounts