Summer Activities for Kids that Teach the Value of Money

By Dina Shoman – Co-founder of Verity The App

School is out, and the summer holidays are here! We know what you’re thinking: how are you going to fill up your kids’ extra time? Instead of them spending all those extra hours on their phone or watching TV, why not engage them in fun activities that they can learn from? Especially about the value of money.

Here are some ideas:

Chores galore.

If you haven’t already setup a chore system for your kids, this summer might just be the best time to do so. Make it fun by adding challenges! Start timing their daily chores and see if they can beat their last score or see who gets a perfect “chore score” each week for an extra bonus. Do they enjoy music? Play musical chores where they switch chores each time the music stops.?

It’s the perfect opportunity to teach them about budgeting. Now they can learn how to save for all the things they keep asking you to buy for them. Time to learn that you’ve got to earn it before you spend it.

Lemonade and beyond.

Setting up a lemonade stand is a great way for kids to learn about business and money, but it’s not the only way! Explore their entrepreneurial spirit and see what ideas they come up with. Maybe your child is an up-and-coming artist who wants to create and sell NFTs. Or maybe they have a great sense of fashion and want to design clothes or jewelry.?

Whether it’s a lemonade stand or something else, take the opportunity to explain how to budget for a business. Start by looking into how much it will cost to get set up and how to price their products so the business can be profitable and continue to grow.

Intern at a company.

Children ages 15 and older can work at actual businesses in the UAE for real money! Many companies look for eager, young, and creative minds who are willing to spend some of their vacation time lending a helping hand and getting paid for it.?

The lesson here is time is money, and money doesn’t just magically appear, it comes from hard work! It’s also an opportunity to explore what your child’s skills are and what they enjoy, especially as they get closer to college.

Spring cleaning in summer.

School will be back before we know it, so why not go through old clothes and belongings and get organized from now? Donate some of the items and sell the rest on platforms like Dubizzle to give your kids the chance to earn some money. If they are having a hard time letting go of things, make it into a challenge and reward who gets rid of the most items. You can also motivate them by putting the money they make from selling used items towards something they have really been wanting to buy.?

Deciding between which items to keep and give away is a good way to talk to children about Needs vs. Wants, and to show them another way they can work hard to earn some money.?

Plan a barbecue.

Summers are great for barbecues, so why not involve your children in planning one? Give them a budget and have them make a list of everything you need for the occasion: food, drinks, napkins, coal. Take them to the store and teach them to shop around and maybe even beat the budget. Give them the money they saved to spend on a treat as a bonus.

Teaching children to stick to a budget and to comparison shop are good skills to learn early on. Is your child’s birthday in the summer? Use this activity to plan the celebration!?

Investment tracker.

Children are fascinated by investing, especially teens and tweens when it comes to Cryptocurrencies and NFTs. To help them learn how to invest smartly, create a virtual portfolio together that they can track or invest in a real one on their behalf. Ask them what things they want to invest in and do some research together. Set a budget and build that portfolio! See how much money they make or lose and talk about what happened.

Investing and tracking prices over time will help teach them that money isn’t made overnight, that some investments are riskier than others, and that it’s important to do your homework and understand what you’re investing in.

Money Games.

Kids just want to have fun, so why not add some board games that also teach them about money? Games like Monopoly, Pay day, Allowance, Game of Life, and Cashflow for Kids can be a lot of fun and educational. Not a fan of board games? Play pretend games instead! Pretend the kitchen is a restaurant and have kids plan all meals within a budget you set. Add different jobs as part of the restaurant and have them “earn” an actual salary based on the hours they work.?

You can create all types of pretend games at home where kids can sell and earn: grocery store, buy/sell items to each other, and so much more. Buy a toy cash register and some play money to add a little realistic feel to it all. Teach them how to handle and count money, and that we need to work to earn money.

It’s easy to occupy kids with phones, games, and tv, but there are plenty of educational activities that teach them the value of money which you can do instead. Money lessons come from real-life experiences, so make sure to include them in all the money-related family activities as well!