We started giving allowance to our oldest about a year ago. We made our own banks out of quart size mason jars using similar concepts - jars for Spend, Save, Give & Grow. The rule of thumb for amount was half their age - Isabel is now 6 so she gets $3 per week. She decided that each week she would divide the money evenly between the jars. It has been a fun learning experience and the concept of money is slowly catching on. I too have not been good about giving the allowance every week - I owe her 6 weeks worth. Her little sister has jars now too - she is 4. I think I need to get them wallets so that they actually take money with them when we go places. I don't tie the allowance to anything like chores or behaviour.

We have found the book "Debt-Proof Your Kids" by Mary Hunt to be useful. She does advocate giving an allowance from age 11 and up; but the money is really just what you would be spending on the child anyway for extras such as outings with friends, etc. The child is required to tithe 10 percent and to save 10 percent, which are good lifelong habits, of course. The rest they spend at their discretion, but they learn that if they spend 15 dollars on bowling one weekend, they may not have enough money to go out for pizza the next.

Sometimes, as Ms. Hunt acknowledges, it can be very painful watching your child make bad choices with this money (as when we witnessed our daughter wasting it on vending machines at school); but it is way less painful to watch them make these mistakes at 12 than at 20.

We just started this, we give my son $5 a week, he is 5. He is required to do some simple chores (setting the table and watering the plants). I like that money pig, I might have to get that. I think he is starting to get a sense of what things cost, although he doesn't quite have a handle on saving yet.

Stealing my sister's idea, we give our son $1 a week, but also add interest monthly. This lets him see how money can grow. We are a generous bank -- he gets 10 percent interest (which makes it easy for him to grasp), up to a maximum of $2 in interest. So if he has $18 in his allowance, he gets $1.80 in interest. If he's got $40, he gets $2 in interest.

I have an 8 year old girl and a 6 year old boy and for about a year now we have chore charts that we go through and check completed chores every night Mon-Thurs. I give them a break on Friday, Sat and Sun. If they get ALL of their checks they get $5 a week. The chore chart is broken into 4 categories. So if they get all checks in the one category they get that $1 and they get a $1 just for being part of the family and being nice, etc. Some people think I am crazy to have on the charts things like brusing and flossing their teeth and washing their hands before dinner but the chore charts are my way to teach them to get into the habit of doing these things. I don't have to tell them to make their bed anymore or floss their teeth - they just do it. A 6 year old who flosses everyday is pretty impressive don't you think? If they do not get all of their checks I give them opportunies to earn extra checks by helping me with my"chores." When they save $100 they have to put half into savings (for college) and they can spend the other $50. It takes them a while to save $100 but when they do I let them spend every penny of the $50 if they want to but they don't get more money in a few days if they see something they want. I am hoping they will also learn that if they don't spend it all in one place they will have money to spend on other occasions. I also make my 8 year old use her own money to buy icecream on Fridays at school - only on Fridays and only with her own money. Next year when my 6 year is in 1st grade he will be able to use his own money for icecream too. It works for us - they like it and they feel good when they get their money each Sunday.