Today’s question is from Marijo:
What are some suggestions for ways kids can earn money? -Marijo
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When my son was little, he would gather up all his toys and have a “boys yard sale” – which helped with all the stuff he was getting too old for and helped him to earn a lot of money which he then used to buy one thing. At first he bought a Lego set, then a portable radio/cd player, then a foosball table… you get the idea. I loved that he cleaned out tons of “little” stuff for one big item. By the time he was 12 or 13, he was pet sitting in the neighborhood (and getting more jobs because of his good reputation). He had one job one year where he went every afternoon after school to let a dog out because the owner worked out of town and didn’t get home until late. As he aged, he worked in yard work… cutting grass and trimming bushes. He always worked harder and more than most boys would so he kept “regular” customers who dearly loved him. He finally decided to go to work in a fast food restaurant in addition to his yard work so he would have even more spending money. Now that he is in college, he has found a job in a grocery deli. He says the way to get a job in this economy is to go in wearing a nice dress shirt, look them in the eye, shake their hands and say “yes, sir” and “no, ma’am”. His friends all complain that they can’t find work but he has always done well. Good luck to your kids in their job hunting careers.
PS One year a boy at the neighborhood swimming pool made balloon animals for profit… I think he only charged a dollar or two but the kids loved it and would bring their dollar just for this. He had a steady business!
Join Kidz Eyes online and take surveys for money. Parents take surveys also and the kids get money in their accounts. Kids have to get permission from their parents to participate.
My parents have two dogs and don’t have any kids at home anymore and they’ve hired a kid in the neighborhood to come to their house every week and pick up dog poop in their backyard.
Also, I know of a kid who washes cars to earn money. I’m sure he asks people in his neighborhood and at church and school to ask people if they need their cars washed. Of course his dad helps him a little but he does a good majority of the work!
It seems a lot these days that there are fewer and fewer kids actually want to “earn” money. A lot seem to expect to just “get” money for no reason. I would love it if during the summer the neighborhood kids would stop by & ask about mowing grass, washing my car, etc. but it doesn’t happen very often anymore. I would much rather pay a neighborhood kid to do the yardwork I don’t or can’t do as opposed to paying a service. When I was a kid we had regular chores, and for extra tasks we took on we were paid for. My brother had a paper route, I helped older neighbors in their yards, and I babysat. My kids were taught there is no free ride and I think them taking on jobs in our neighborhood has helped them as they grew into adults.
We have four children ranging in age from 20 to 12. Over the years the children have found a variety of things to do to earn extra money. Some ideas were on their own–which we encourage–others, suggested. If you have a yard sale, the children can sell bottled water or canned drinks or baked goods– that they make themselves. In addition, they can put their items in the sale. Other great ideas, depending on your child’s age and maturity: babysitting, mother’s helper, dog walking, pet sitting, rake leaves, mow lawn, cleaning leaves out of the pool, bring in mail/newspaper when your neighbor is on vacation, general help around the house–one of our older neighbors asked if our son would help wash his windows!–when your neighbors see your children’s work ethic, they will ask for additional help. Our city has a great teen consignment store. When our children outgrow their better/name brand clothes, they take them to the store where they pay cash on the spot. In addition, if the kids want to get rid of their older electronics or movies, there is a store in town that will pay cash for those items as well. Also, if you have a teenager with great academic skills, she can tutor younger students. Your child can also approach the local sports association and ask if they can help referee a sport your child has played for a while. They ususally accept pre-teens for that as well. One of our neighbors was selling their home and asked if our daughter would make sure it was always clean and presentable for showings. And don’t forget the bookstore that will buy gently used books. Your children can take their old books there for cash. Alot of the opportunities for your child to earn money can be quite entrepreneural. Our son placed his game system on Craigslist. I think it is important that they participate as much as possible; whether it is by making the baked goods, making flyers, going with you to the store and filling out the paperwork and watching the process, cleaning the yard tools, counting money at the yard sale–learning to budget–and using the computer to find the stores–have them use mapquest to get directions…. And, of course, your child could always sell lemonade!
My youngest brother usually sets up a “krispy kream” donut stand whenever we host a yard sale. That seems to sell better than lemonade stands. He has also learned to scour yard sales for items that he can sell online or at flea market booths. He’s pretty observant and is always coming up with fun, new ways for him to earn extra money. 🙂 It’s fun to see kids learning to work hard and save their money.
Here are things we did/our kids did to earn money at various ages, from young to older:
– lemonade stand during yard sale (learning to be polite & assertive to customers, greeting people, learning that people pay for services)
– pet-sitting, lawn-mowing, weed-wacking, paper route
– mother’s helper
– babysitting
– “real” jobs (at 16 in most places we’ve lived)
My daughter (8 years old) wanted to earn extra money so I simply suggested that she think about what she could do that other people would be willing to pay for. After I declined to monitor her lemonade stand in February, she suggested baking. It has proven to be very profitable and provided a lot of opportunities to practice her math skills. She actually enjoys fractions because of all her practice when she doubles or triples the recipes. I am a teacher, so she made business cards and flyers for me to take to my school and she gave them to selected teachers at her own school. Her business, Cookies, Crumbs and All That Good Stuff, has provided many fond mother/daughter memories. I love to bake! It is a true joy to pass on my passion for baking to my daughter.
This past summer I started buying things at garage sales to sell on ebay and craigslist. My kids often came with me and they jumped in on the action. Some of the highlights for them: My 11 yo daughter picked up a milkshake maker for $1 which sold for $60 on ebay! My son purchased a $5 toy box and sold it the next day on craigslist for $45. We purchased a Thomas set for $100 and sold it for $260. Those were biggies. Many items only made them $3 – $20, but they were thrilled! They helped me to scout the sales, and bought items with their own money. I’ve taught them how to check ebay to see what things are going for. They can also help with taking pictures. I do all the listing and the selling on CL. They are looking forward to the start of garage sale season this year! They are 11 and 12. This gave us a great opportunity to help them with saving, giving and spending decisions. It may not work for eveeryone, but it was a great experince for us. The only problem was…they were cutting in to MY profits! : ) Overall, I ended up making about $100 a week, which was not bad for something that was sooo fun for all of us!
Teresa great idea to have the kids work with you on ebay sellling! I love it!
My son and daughter each wrote 1 page stories printed them out drew and colored a picture on each copy and they sold them at a craft fair I was attending as a Tastefully Simple Consultant. (each kiddo sold at a different craft show) They had to do all the talking to their potential customers and they both sold out. 1 story = $1. They each made $10, making them published income-earning writers!
I taught piano lessons from age 16-18. I taught mostly children, they came to my home, and back then I charged $8 for a 30 min lesson. This was very affordable for parents where I lived, and I still made more than minimum wage and did not have to drive to my job. I was able to pick my hours and it worked well during the school year, then I would pick up a second part time job in the summers. And it parlayed nicely into my choice of majors (I majored in elementary ed with a minor in music).
We’ve had a really mild winter this year, but when I was little, my brother, sister and I would don our snow gear every time we had a snow day and would walk the block offering to shovel driveways/walks for “whatever they thought the driveway was worth”. We usually averaged $15/20 a driveway in our neighborhood (there were some long ones!), and could usually pull $100 or more before we finally tuckered out. There was a widow who lived two doors down whose driveway we would always shovel for free…but she would always insist on “paying” us. 🙂 She would see that the schools were closed, would know we would be around, and would start a loaf of bread in her bread machine, and would send us home with a fresh loaf of bread.
I had my first job at 14 (aside from babysitting) working as a softball scorekeeper for the city leagues. I was paid $7 a game (usually 3 a night) and I had to put out the bases and line the fields. I also got the occasional job playing piano for community events providing “cocktail music”. I’m glad my parents had me start working early, because all of the money I set aside allowed me to purchase a bassoon for my college degree (which got me 8K a year in performance scholarship).
I got a scholarship on bassoon too. Purchased my Fox Renard 240 the summer before I started school. That was such a blessing.
I started a business doing basic yardwork when I was 8 (with my best friend, who was 10). Raking leaves, shoveling snow, etc. No power tools and we stayed in the neighborhood.
Prior to that, I occasionally had a candy-stand (we were blessed with a grocery store with an excellent bulk aisle; I would buy and re-sell outside our house, like a lemonade stand) in the summer.
In general, I would recommend for any kid they find something they enjoy (not necessarily something they’re good at, though that helps) and monetize it. Gardening? Breed & sell vegetables or starter plants. Kids? Babysit or be a mothers’ helper. Some kids really enjoy selling/negotiating: they can team up with other kids who are not great at sales, or start scouring yard sales & goodwill for stuff to sell… or have a lemonade stand 😉 If there’s nothing they enjoy that seems marketable, then basic labor is always marketable: cleaning, painting, yardwork, picking up dog poop… etc.
I think the biggest thing you can do for your children when it comes to “work” is to teach them how to work well. We don’t pay for things that need to be done around the house, “chores”, but because they have learned how to do those things they have marketable skills. My boys have earned money mowing lawns and helping friends with general home improvement type work. Sometimes someone really just needs extra hands – no real skill but they know my boys can be trusted. My daughter (age 12) can sew and has made several hundered dollars sewing embellished burp cloths for ladies over the last couple of years. When we moved a lady from our church helped and noticed how well my daughter cleans and has hired her to come help spring clean. Once word gets around that your children know how to work they will be called on by friends to do odd jobs for them.
My older daughter and my youngest son take care of our chickens and get to sell the extra eggs. My children have also hauled scrap metal. One of my sons helped a friend who is contractor gut a building and he allowed my son to have all the copper wire they pulled out. He brought that home and stripped it and then sold it.
I think there needs to be a balance for in all of our lives between work and play, and that includes the lives of children. For each family and even each child that balance will be different.
I am hoping my kids can “raise” worms to sell for fishing when they are a bit older:)
Our family’s policy has been that doing homework and chores went with the privileges of being part of our family. There didn’t seem to be a point to earning money from your own family members.
HOWEVER, if the were doing something for my husband’s business, they were entitled to be paid. He uses a lot of a specific formed-sheet metal strap, and if they would form them in the press (a non-dangerous hinged wood gizmo) and punch the two holes, he would pay the kids what they cost from a supplier: 5 cents each, only in batches of at least 10 at a time. All three of my kids earned money this way from the time they were about 6 or 7.
My girls made money breeding animals, starting with guinea pigs when they were about 6 or 7. They had a trio as pets, and when they had babies (often!) the local pet store would eagerly buy them for half of retail. The cost of feed and shavings came out of the profits. The animals took up little space, made fun pets, and ate apple cores and limp carrots to boot!
My son made money mowing lawns and doing yardwork, then when he got into high school he did some math tutoring.
The easiest way to make money is to find someone that will pay you for something you already do well (pets, schoolwork, yardwork, housework) so it won’t seem like such a burden. My kids even had a home-school friend who tested video games and computer programs for a local programmer.
My 16 year old is VERY busy with school and multiple bands. He wants to be a band teacher and I feel a “regular” teenage job would not work for him right now, but he needed to have a source of income. He was volunteering at the Junior high band and they let him advertise private trumpet lessons. He has enough students to give him spending money and a little for savings. He should be able to do even more during his senior year. And the best part is that this will be GREAT experience for college and scholarship applications. Also teaches him responsibility and how to work with parents. Works for us!
I think that is awsome that he found something that works for him. The best advice i ever got was to start at a job, or field, where you wanted to end up. What a great start for your son.
It really depends on the age but if they’re 13, in many states they can do farm work seasonally (like corn de-tasseling in the summers).
We often have yard sales in our house. People bless us with stuff, I cant use it so I have a yard sale and use the money to purchase stuff I do need/can use. I usually take that opportunity to let the children go through their stuff and pick out what they would like to sell/get rid of. The cash is theirs since the items they chose to sell was theirs.
Mine are also 3 and 4 years old ;).
When I was 8 I would walk neighborhood dogs. I knew the dogs, I knew the owners, and it was ok. I also worked with a sibling. That was my mom’s rule. Always in 2’s. I never felt put out that I had to split the profit since 2 finished more quickly than 1 and we could take on more work. We raked and weeded yards on our street.
By the time I was 13 I got my first paper route. Seems that tends to run in my genes. My mom had a paper route and my grandmother did a paper route. Now all of my siblings get a paper route by the time they turn 13.
I also housecleaned by the time I was 13. I was good at it but I also did it for the elderly that were kind enough to forgive a not-so-good of a job but also great enough to point out things that could be done better.
I also babysat by the time I was 11 years. I was the eldest of 9 children, I could change a diaper and get children to mind me by then… I had a lot of experience. I ONLY mention the whole age thing because most young people need a bit more time since everyone doesn’t grow up around children and sometimes can be a bit unsure. If you have a church nursery, volunteer there for a few weeks/months. It’ll help you so much!
Someone mentioned not using your childhood working and cleaning and whatnot but enjoy your childhood. To a certain extent I agree, however, I think its very important for our culture to realize that there are responsibilities and tasks that require giving up that freedom. I may not have been able to go to every event that my friends went too because I was working but I think it helped me out when I was older too. I dont feel like I really missed a lot of my childhood. It really saddens me too to see so many people in their 20’s and such, taking off all this time for work so they can play. Then they complain that they dont earn enough.
Sorry, don’t know if someone said this already but – pick up dog poop for the neighbors! 🙂 If you can get them to do it.
While this won’t work for many, my kids earn money by raising sheep. We live on a small farm and raise registered Cheviot sheep. They care for them daily and show them at 4-H, county and state fairs through out the summer and fall. The premuims they earn from fairs goes into their savings account. As they get older, they have bought sheep to improve the flock. We also sell some butcher lambs and the wool. In addition, this is their 4-H project, so they compete in other contests and win prizes that include college scholarships and trips. Oldest 2 girls have had $2K+ saved by the time they entered college and the younger ones, in high school now, have even more.
My college girls earn money tutoring! The school hires them to tutor classes that have high rates of failing, and they make pretty good money, for less than 10 hrs of work a week, most of it they get to chose the time. It also helps them really polish their skills in those classes. And great resume builder for grad school. BTW they are both ag majors, so teaching degree or major is not required.
My 13 y/o walks an elderly neighbor’s dog m-f for $1/walk. I will pay for a few odd jobs around the house (cleaning out the van, pulling weeds, cleaning out closets, watching younger siblings while I run a quick errand) but she does most chores in exchange for having a cell phone.
I do like the advice from those who have said to let the children be children for a while longer.
My husband and I live far from our families, so we’ve frequently paid neighborhood kids to take care of our pets when we go on vacation. We have cats, so they just need to stop by once a day to feed them and scoop the litter box. It’s been a great job for a 10-12 year old, and they can make a little extra money and learn some responsibility without a huge time commitment.
My son takes care of the dogs down the street each day after school. they work long hours and he goes over and lets them out, plays with them, gets them water and treats and on Friday’s picks up the dog poop. He gets $20 a week. he is 13, but has been doing it for 4 years.
Same son also started umpiring baseball for the local rec league last year. This will be his second year and he gets about $12 a game and the season is April – June.
My son is 5 and regularly ask for money, and “extra” things like dvd’s or video games. We don’t put these things in our budget and don’t like to just buy kids stuff needlessly all the time. We started using goalforit.com and created a chart for chores and school work. He earns points through the site and then can redeem them for activities or cash. Although he almost always chooses cash. This also give us an opportunity ti teach him about handling money. He has set up a savings account and also tithes.
You can check out the post on my blog for more info http://WWW.motherlymisadventures.com
I worked from a young age and feel like it gave me a great work ethic. Although I did have time to be a kid, too.
My kids are 3, 6 and 10. I have certain chores they do as a part of being our family but then I have other ones they can do for pay. I also am a advid couponer and I will pay my oldest to cut coupons for me. One thing I thought of was kids could sell coupons (or sell the labor of cutting coupons) on ebay. You can buy inserts or get inserts from apartments, too. My brother has a recycling bind by the mailboxes and he constantly brings me inserts. In my area Red Plum and Proctor & Gamble go to apartments automatically. Mother’s helpers are great but I don’t feel my daughter is mature enough.
I started working at a young age. I do not regret it at all. If you have children teach them to work.
My children are all soccer players. When my oldest turned 12 he took a test to become a certified soccer referee. He is now 16 and continues to referee. He is able to work around his school and high school soccer team schedule. We have encouraged him to save as much money from his paychecks as possible by matching any money he deposits into his savings account. Now our 11 year is counting the days until he can become a referee 🙂
I did that, too! I started when I was 11 and continued till I was old enough for a part time job. My parents were on a tight income, and it allowed me to purchase “wants” that they could not afford. I think I learned very valuable lessons from it. I’m 30 now, and I know that if you want things- you have to work for them!
I highly recommend the book, “Praparing Sons to be Single Income Providers, ” by Steve and Terri Maxwell. It outlines when and how children can and should be working. Although focused more towards training sons I believe that young ladies can also benefit from the information in this book.
http://www.titus2.com/ecommerce/products/prod_listing.php/1130
When I was 9, I started collecting cans and bottles to recycle (the ones you can get 2-5 cents for each and recycle them at machines at the grocery store). Mom helped me set up a recycling bin in the apartment complex laundry room, and after church socials I’d voluteer to help police up the trash and kept the recyclables for my stash. No dumpster diving was allowed, though, since that’s dangerous and some people have rules about going through stranger’s trash. Easy enough to ask for it before it gets to the garbage, though.
Didn’t get rich, but it seemed like a ton of money at that age.
Starting at a very young age we could do extra jobs around the house to earn money. We could wipe down the dining room chairs (10 chairs, lots of toddlers!), scrub out the trash cans, etc. As we got older we could work for the neighbors. One of our neighbors had us go over to their house three times a day to tend to their dogs. Feed them, let them outside and play with them, wipe off their paws and put them back into their indoor kennels. We did that 5 days a week, and split $21 a week three ways. When I was 11 I started babysitting for another neighbor, and they would pay me extra to do their dishes, fold their laundry, iron, and wash windows. Other neighbors would hire us to weed, pass out halloween candy, wash and detail cars, babysit, and tutor their kids.
I made beaded jewelry and set up some in a friend of a friend’s hair salon and sold them, I sold jewelry at art shows, craft bazzars, and yard sales.
At the age of 12, our doctor’s office hired me to come in once a week to file paperwork and fold bills to send out. I still work there, 14 years later!
Maria, what a great example. You were not only willing to do all these jobs, but you also knew how to do them AND you were (are) trustworthy. I really believe these are the keys to helping our children get any kind of jobs.
This is a great list. My children have done some of these things along with washing and waxing RV’s at a friend’s RV park, dog and goat sitting. When word gets out that you’re a hard worker people will be calling.
I am reading this anxiously for ideas that would work where we live. It doesn’t snow, there aren’t leaves to rake (we live in the desert), or sticks to pick up. Most people have rocks for a yard. My children have sometimes done work for grandpa, or gone with grandpa to help him work for a friend, but those opportunities are just a few times a year.
Brandy, I wonder if they could offer to walk the dog, water some potted plants if people are going to be gone? I live in the desert also and understand about the rock yards. Cactus don’t require a lot of watering where I live and that is about all anyone has here.
That is a tough one! Never thought about not having leaves to rake and sticks to pick up as it is a never ending chore on our property!
Some desert yards get messy with leaves, pine cones, seeds and palm fruit, so it might be an occasional option. They also might help people that do their yard work themselves (like cleaning up the brush from pruning shrubs).
They could pick up trash from yards for $1 or $2.
As the kids get older, they might earn a bit as mother’s helpers for other homeschool families.
Brandy, I love your website. Here is what i found and saved because it seemed like such a crazy yet fun project for the kids. If you go to this link you should get to it. it is about raising crickets and you can find other ideas from there. http://www.thepennyhoarder.com/2011/08/weird-business-6-make-money-cricket-farming
Both my kids play soccer and took the classes to become certified referees. They started refereeing local rec soccer at 12 and my son recently moved up a grade at 17. He can make +/-$300 on a weekend at a tournament and regular weekend games are between $25-$75/game depending on level of game and his assigned position. The best part is they both understand the laws of the game much better and know to be respectful to the referee even if it wasn’t a good call. They know just how hard it is to call a “perfect” game.
My daughter got a job at a young age and I watch her hours because sometimes they take advantage of her youth. A few hours a week is OK but school and childhood come first. As long as the job does not take precedence over school we are OK but if it does the job goes.
Another note, is my daughter is not old enough to drive so I have to get her to work and home. We work her schedule out but the additional burden sometimes does not seem worth it. I could make her pay gas money but honestly she does not make that much. She has taken over other expenses so I leave it at that.
My daughter has had a minimum-wage job for about six months. With gas at almost $4 per gallon, transporting her four or five days each week would cut into our budget considerably (we calculated about $100 per month for gas and wear/tear on our vehicles). She is responsible for paying for her gas, whether we drive her or she drives herself in one of our cars.
I worked constantly from the time I just turned 11 until I was 46 years old. I am more broke now than I have ever been in life. I am 60 this year. I try to earn what I can but health issues get in the way. So basically I sit and read blogs. If I had to do it over again I would not have worked so hard, I don’t think it got me anywhere!
I would have played some. I never went swimming, never ice skated, never went ski water or snow never took a vacation, never did the shopping thing with the girls I worked all the time. I told my own children to work hard but play harder and enjoy some of life. To this day daughter works 3 jobs but only for 60 hours per week and she squeezes in all the play she can (she is always trying to figure out what the next big fun thing is going to be! She is 26. I hope she plays for years to come!)
Oh Sarah, hugs to you! Sorry for your health issues.
In a recent Family Fun magazine, there was a story of a boy who takes his neighbors’ garbage cans to the curb for 25 cents each week. He started his “business” by asking the neighbors and gradually increased his client list. His father helped with the heavier cans. I thought it was a great idea.
Ha- I just posted this not realizing you had. I thought this was the best idea! I want someone to offer this service in my neighborhood.
My son recently started collecting aluminum cans. He asks people save them up for him, and he looks for them around the neighborhood. Just this week we took 26lbs. to the recycling center, where they payed cash for them. It is a simple job, but it is his sole responsibility, and he has to learn to talk to others and make arrangements.
This is a great idea. I was doing this, but found out that if you take cans from PA to NY to redeem, it is illegal. They must be purchased in NY to redeem in NY.
It depends, as not all states have bottle deposit. If they have bottle deposit, they have to be purchased in state the state where they are redeemed. If you are selling them for scrap metal, you get paid by the pound, not per can/bottle.
I have been babysitting since I was 11 years old. I didn’t start a permanent part-time job until I was 17. I think that was the right age to start. For my own kids, they do occasional jobs to help people, such as lawn work, picking up apples, etc. I don’t want them to give up their childhood. I always have additional chores they can do at home for extra money.
I will pay my girls for extra credit projects that they complete. They do not get paid for schoolwork or good grades, that is part of their expectations. If there is a PTA, school, city or state art competition or project, they will get extra money for each that they turn in. This way they continue to do the extra projects and they are learning that their skills have value. They also earn recognition for their entries. This has really gotten them intereseed in communuty projects that they never cared about before.
My son started working odd jobs at a young age because he enjoyed it. He has always been a hard worker and still is today as an adult. One of my favorite stories of him was when he was about 6 years old he’s set a lemonade stand up in the front yard. We had lots of neighborhood kids. One day he came in from selling and was getting in his piggy bank. I asked him what he was doing and he replied. Ashley’s dad won’t give her money for a drink so I’m getting money from my piggy bank to give her. Rather than just giving her a free drink he took from his personal savings and gave her the dignity of buying her own. This still makes me smile. Even today as an adult he has that same kind of heart.
Eunice–I just read all of today’s comments on this topic, and yours stuck in my mind. Your son was very gracious in his response. I’ll have to remember that idea for my children. They love earning money through lemonade stands and other entrepreneurial jobs. Thanks for sharing.
When my son was 12, he started pet sitting for neighbors when they go on vacation. He typically lets them pay him whatever they think is best, but if you ask him, he will ask for $5/day.
We pay the kids a small amount of money when they shadow another adult doing a job, or if they help out at Hubby’s work.
Our sons, age 9 and 5, have a snow removal business. It’s in it’s 4th year. They shovel for nearby businesses and homes. They contact their clients before the first snow and agree on a price based on the size of the area needing snow removal. My husband is always with them. They go out early in the morning to have all the snow removed by 8am. Then they come in to warm up and go back out to collect their money. It has been a fabulous learning experience in so many different ways.
My son does a 365 blog piggybacked onto my blog (thefrugalgirl.com/joshuas365). He’s having fun, developing his photography skills, and earning a little bit of money on the side. He’s 12, so he doesn’t have a lot of other options right now!
My kids all start working when they are 14. We have a local amusement park that employs kids starting at that age, but just for the summer. My son, who will be 16 this summer, really learned good work ethics last summer. He’s had the whole school year off, and he’s looking forward to working again this summer. Another thing he’s been doing is selling items online. We have a local listing site similar to craigs list. If I find something I don’t need anymore I give it to him to sell. His commission is 30 -40% This allows me to get rid of items and he is learning to sell and barter online. We meet buyers at a local McDonalds to make the trade, I go with him to finish the deal. This has actually spilled over and his friends are having him help them sell items online.
My 7 yo son shovels snow, picks up pinecones, even walks small dogs for $1 a walk. He gets an allowance, but when he needs extra money he always comes to me first for odd jobs. He also sells his old toys and small clothes online with his brothers help.
http://www.kidzeyes.com, kids ages 6 and up take online surveys and earn money…parents can also take surveys and earn money. This is cash…sent in the form of a check. 4 of our kids are signed up and earn anywhere from 20-100 dollars a year.
Two of my children do this, too. It is great! They have earned quite a bit of money from it. Another great kids’ survey site is Panel Polls: http://panelpolls.net/ Between the two sites, my girls have received quite a few checks.
Ours went into the tomato business, with a stand and on consignment. Here is the business plan:
http://www.mymothermode.com/2011/08/money-making-business-for-kids/
I would piggy back on that question and ask not just about what they can do, but what is a reasonable payment?
It depends on the age and the area in which you live.
I think extra chores around the house that need help. Walls, baseboards, fans, switch plates, doors, doorknobs, etc. Also, depending on your area, you can have a bake sale, with baked goods. Kind of like a garage sale. 🙂 Depending on the age, maybe they could learn a trade of sorts, there are a lot of options online, web design (www.titus2.com) has a great one for younger people I would say 9 and up (mature 9). They could learn beading, sewing, photography and have an etsy store. That is what I am working with my 9 year old on right now. 🙂 Hope this helps.
In our area youth are utilized as referees for hockey. My son started when he was 12. Made enough to buy his X-Box360 the first year. A computer the 2nd year and a 4 wheeler last year. Unfortunately got sick of being yelled at by untruly coaches and parents and quit.
Have the ones who want to babysit take a class. Check YMCA, health dept or local hospital. They usually teach choking child and responsibility etc. that go with it. Neighbor girl sold cookies and lemonade 2 summers in a row to pay for her camp. I don’t know if there are rules about that, but we’re sorry they moved. She kept her mom and grandma busy helping her bake.
Have them bring a bag and gloves when you go bike riding and pick up returnable cans.
My 10-yr old grandson makes bluebird houses to sell at the Farmers Market. He uses scrap cedar when he can get it.
This is wonderful!
Our children take care of our chickens (clean the coop, collect the eggs, let them out in the morning and put them in at night) and sell the extra eggs. (They have to pay for feed out of their earnings, so they don’t make much, but it’s a valuable lesson, in my opinion.)
They have also been paid (by close friends and family) to pick up sticks after a storm.
Do they play musical instruments? Churches regularly hire musicians for special events. Most of the time, they contact professionals (this is what I do), but most end up without anyone in the end because we tend to take the higher paying jobs. Yet, if you just get your name out there, you may be able to score some extra cash. Not to mention it’s a great way to serve the church!
I have 4 kids and I teach home school, we have ran into the problem of kids wanting things that we cannot afford many times, so we came up with several solutions to help them learn how to earn their own money.
1. Catching nightcrawlers, all you need is a flash light and a small styrofoam cooler with damp peat moss in it, my daughter sold worms for $1.50 a dozen, she hung up signs around town, and made $300 in her first summer, and bought a brand new bike. Not bad for 9 years old.
2. I garden, and overplant to secure my crop, when it is time to transplant, I let the kids set up like a leomade stand but they sell leftover baby tomato plants for $1 a plant instead of lemonade.
3. They have spoke with neighbors about shoveling snow in winter and doing yard work in summer.
my kids sell stuff they don’t want anymore at garage sales and through my account on ebay. they have lemonade stands on high traffic weekends (we live across the street from a park with lots of events). during the summers, my son (since age 10) runs a bicycle courier/delivery and flyering service within our neighborhood. my daughter (now 10) walks an elderly neighbor’s Chihuahua every afternoon.
Ours did great with a tomato stand, even on our rural road. They also sold them on consignment. Click on my name for a post on their business plan.
We give our kids an allowance so they can have a “regular” source of money to learn about tithing, saving, and spending. But, we do allow them to do extra work- raking leaves for example, to earn some extra money. My 10 year old also has a weekly-ish job in the winter bringing in firewood for his 80 year old great-aunt. He fills her bin in the garage as well as a small pile by the fireplace so she doesn’t have to go all the way to the back of the yard through the snow. (About 30 minutes a week.) Sometimes, my 7 year old helps, and the boys split the ‘paycheck.’
(I suppose the jobs would vary by area- in our town, the newspaper only employs adults for paper routes, so it’s not even an option for kids/ teens.)
When I worked and my son was homeschooled, he had extra time during the day. When he was around 15, I paid him to do our household laundry and ironing (except for my “personal things”),. He also cleaned the major areas of the house. I paid him $100 a month. He also mowed lawns about ages 14 through 16. He used this money to buy a truck when he was about 17. Great for a kid to buy his first vehicle with no debt.
My brother paid for a brand-new truck in full by the time he was 16. I was impressed.
A few years later, he was investing in a mutual fund, and he bought a condo north of Los Angeles with a down payment from the mutual fund.
He sold the condo at a HUGE profit a few years later, rented for several years, and when the market dropped enough, he bought a house in the same area.
He was very responsible with his money, and has done well from the beginning (he got a job at Burger King when he was 14, which is how he paid for the truck).
A friend of mine also paid for a new car when he was 16 due to his Burger King job! 🙂
We used to pick up apples in my grandma’s yard when they fell from her apple tree. We started this as soon as we were physically able. Same with pulling weeds for my mom and neighbors. We always got to keep money made at a yard-sale from selling our toys/stuff. There is a young girl in our church who sets up a lemonade stand every year at the town fair and donates her profit to a charity.
How funny that you are posting this today! My son (5yrs old) is trying to set up his own garage sale as we speak. So far he has rocks from the yard, some “art” (pictures he’s drawn), and some sticks gathered to sell. 🙂
My daughter who is now 7 likes to do that and has since she was 5. She once sold an old windchime destined for Goodwill for $20 to a very generous passer by. Now she wants to sell “crystals” (pieces of rock) all the time expecting similar results 🙂
OMG! that is too cute! My 6 yr old has been wanting to have a lemonade and s’mores stand, but I told her it’s too cold outside. They are just too cute sometimes!
I saw a great job idea of kids in this age range in Family Fun magazine. The boy in the article offered to roll his neighbors trash cans to the curb on the night before trash day and then to roll them back after the trash had come. He gets paid $0.25-$1 (depending on the neighbors’ generosity). His dad walks with him to do it in the evening and his mom in the afternoon. I thought that was a great idea for a young kid- I wish someone in my neighborhood wanted to do it!
awesome:)
That is awesome. My 5 year old loves to work and make money. And he is very good at it too. He needs something to keep him busy.
i’d say until they’re 16 don’t let them do any sort of “work” outside the home. If you want to teach them about the value of money and being financially responsible, pay them for chores, but don’t make them work a job at a young age (even if it is to get items they want). My husband began working at the age of 13 (paper route for a few years) and then began a retail job at the age of 16. He then worked all the way through college and began his career immediately upon graduating from college. He feels as though he’s never gotten a break and wishes that he could have had more time to play and less focus on working throughout his childhood. For him, the only break he’ll get from working is when he finally retires. I ,on the other hand, didn’t get a job until I got my driver’s license and made school my full-time job while I was in college. I feel like I got to enjoy my youth and can now focus on working and dealing with responsibilities that I didn’t need as a child. just my 2 cents.
My husband and I both started working when we were quite young. I started babysitting and cleaning house when I was 10 and did odd jobs from then until I was 16 when I got a FT job and have worked FT ever since even through college. My husband lied about his age and started working at 13 and has worked ever since, through college as well. We were both raised with single moms who had very little so we worked out of necessity – not to buy “extra” things. He is now 45 and I am 38. We both feel worn out with work and feel like we missed our childhoods. Don’t get me wrong, we are grateful to have jobs esp. the jobs we have which are good paying, have good insurance, etc. Point is, I agree with you although I don’t think an odd job for a relative or neighbor here or there (shoveling snow if it only snows a couple of times a year for example) is bad. There are a lot of lessons that go along with that type of job – communication, negotiation, follow through, etc. but I think it should be kept to a minimum.
I definitely agree with you- an odd job here or there is fine, but if you can afford it then let kids be kids. Childhood is so short and the real world of working and paying bills will be here soon enough for them.
Sorta disagree here. I understand that childhood is fleeting. But I also understand that childhood is practice adulthood. What is done in childhood will be carried into adulthood. To change a habit as a grown up is a little hard to do. To build it as a child is much simpler and more pleasant. Teach them to work a full day. While this usually means spending a full day on schoolwork and helping around the home or in the neighborhood rather than for wages, life for children should be characterized by responsibilities and the labor that goes with it and learning to keep their hands occupied in useful things and not just entertaining and pleasant things. Let them learn that work is invigorating, pleasant, responsible, and non-negotiable. Whether for pay or not, don’t let them know you can afford to let them play around all day. Besides, even if you can afford to let them go without paying jobs, it’s pretty healthy for them not to know that and to learn the value of your dollar just like you have. Entertainment is for respite but children should never think respite is the rule of life or they will have a big shock coming later on. A day of rest assumes there has been a pattern of work to require rest. Even the Lord works and He can certainly afford not to. Let the child learn that it is good to “bear the yoke in his youth.”
I see what your saying. I think it depends on the child. My oldest child needs to be taught work ethic. We have him do regular chores around the house that he doesn’t get paid for. However, he isn’t a worker. So we will send him to our neighbor’s house to help pick up sticks, pine cones, etc. We also have him work for his grandparents to earn money. Not all the time, just once or twice a year. My daughter, however, works hard without us asking her to. We figure that if our son, who’s 9, learns now at an early age, it will make life easier for him in the long run. We do see a difference just in the short time we have encouraged this. 🙂
It’s impossible to “teach” a child something that they are not ready to learn.
Completely disagree. (Respectfully!) 🙂 I’m not saying that I can teach my 3 year old long division, or of course you can’t teach a newborn to walk. However, teaching my children life lessons at a young age will encourage growth and development. I really have seen a difference in my son since we have started encouraging him to work harder.
That’s nice but it’s not an option for many. If I had not started babysitting at the age of 13, I would not have had money to pay for my personal items (shampoo, feminine hygiene), shoes or clothes because my parents didn’t have the $ / refused to do so. I also had to work my way through college at Northwestern University and through my Masters degree program.
Statistically, only about 25 to 33 percent of teens have jobs that are counted in the US labor statistics. That number has been steadily dropping, in part because jobs are going to the more experienced people that are available due to this economy.
Even in better economic times, only about half of the teenage population work.
I concur with what these others are saying. I started babysitting around 12 and at 16 began working full time. But 21 I was completely burnt out, felt unsure of what I wanted to do with my future, and I resented the fact that I felt like I had missed out on a lot of just being young. If you really want to teach your children something, it would help them more to learn to be satisfied with what they have than allowing them to work for things they don’t need.
I think most states don’t allow kids younger than 16 to work (if so, it is VERY limited) and most employers won’t hire people under 18 (even though they will accept applications for 16 and up, it is more of a liability). I think that it is completely fine for a child to have a small “job” outside of the house….shoveling snow, mowing a lawn here or there, or raking leaves, etc. I know how proud my boys get when they get paid for picking up sticks at their grandmas house and I wouldn’t want to discourage that.
I also started working young, babysitting and stuff around 10. I feel it was a great way to learn a strong work ethic. I don’t feel burned out, I feel like I learned how to work diligently. I am happy my parents allowed me this opportunity to learn how to communicate professionally with non-family members, responsiblity and commitment among other things.
This is an interesting response and a perspective I hadn’t thought of before. I also started working really young (my first jobs were house sitting for neighbors and then babysitting at 11 – I was responsible, but still probably too young!). I worked through midde, high-school, and college. It was great in that my savings, earnings, and scholarships allowed me to pay for college. But I was so busy working and being stressed, I never figured out exactly what I enjoyed doing. Looking back, what would have been helpful would have been if someone had helped me to look at my early jobs as learning experiences; to figure out what I enjoyed, understand how to advocate for myself as an employee, try out entreprenurial skills, making time for both work and fun, etc… Instead, I only focused on putting my nose to the grindstone and working. I think that might be the cause for burnout – at least for me! Thanks for making me think of another perspective!
Laura, I am sorry to hear on how your hubby missed out.
I had a very different experience, however. I am so happy that I worked starting at 15 and haven’t stopped since. I worked my way through college as well. I think that college students have WAY too much time on their hands and that working is not too much to ask. I learned so many valuable skills while working those high school and college years.
I think the main difference between myself and your husband was that I worked less hours than it sounds like he had too. I still played high school sports and in college was involved in many different activities.
While some college students have a lot of free time, many do not. Some of the more rigorous majors leave very little time for sleep, let alone work or fun.
I did have a rigorous, science based major that was at the #2 program in the country. And most of my college friends also did (nursing with clinicals, engineering, pre-med) and most of them worked a 10-15 hours a week as well. Graduate degrees are another matter. I am referring to undergraduate.
I felt the same way when I was in college; that I had no time. After I graduated, worked full time and had children, then I realized what busy is!!!
Andrea, to some extent you’re right… but I’ve seen too many college students who had no interest in working hard at ANYTHING (usually including their major). My husband and I both went to a demanding science/engineering school; I worked about 10 hours/week (various jobs over the years AT the school, as I did not have work-study funding or a car, and my parents were relatively generous)… he worked a minimum of 30 hours/week in addition to having a full course load. THAT is probably too much (one semester, he ended up with a daily schedule that only allowed him 4 hours of sleep – in the form of 2 2-hour naps)… but I think all college students should be working in SOME financially rewarding way, even if it is just working hard on their grades to keep a scholarship. Not working in college is a good way to end up with no job prospects after college.
Very true, Anitra.
Some people work very hard at anything that is set before them. Others goof off as much as possible.
I don’t think you should pressure your kid to “get a job” at an early age. However, allowing and encouraging your kid to earn their own money provides a huge sense of freedom and accomplishment.
My parents never “made” us get jobs, but at the same time if I earned some extra money babysitting or collecting and recycling cans, I then had money to buy things that my parents couldn’t afford to give me. Getting money from my parents/relatives for doing extra chores didn’t give me the same satisfaction.
One of the best lessons my parents taught me is that money = independence. That was the best motivation to succeed in life they could have given me.
Thanks Laura–I like that perspective. 🙂
Where we used to live we had lots of oak trees and a very large lot. Several young children around 10-14 would come by and offer to pull weeds, rake leaves and said we could pay them whatever we wanted. Hopefully, no one took advantage of them because they did do a good job.
My 12 & 9 year olds share a paper route. We were lucky enough to get the area right in our neighborhood. They get paid once a month, and we put part of the money in their savings account, and part of it we give them for spending money. That’s money I don’t have to give them!!! Plus, someday when they need to use the money in their savings account, they will be surprised at how much is in there!!
We are empty nesters and have 2 1/2 acres to keep up with so we often hire neighborhood kids to pick up all the downed sticks and tree limbs after a storm or big wind. Kids as young as 10 can do this job. We pay by the job and not the hour as we find some of them just love to gab with us.
I would also be willing to hire teens to do my windows if they did a good job as it is hard to get to these types of jobs with everything else we have to maintain.
Hey! This is a really great idea!! We have 2 little ones and I’ve been racking my brain on how we were going to find ways to teach them about money and what it takes to earn it (you know, the value of a dollar?). I’m gonna start asking our empty nester friends if they’d be willing to do this for our kids. Of course they’re young so they won’t be able to do too much, but I’m sure there’s something we can come up with.
I do have a friend who has 3 jars set up for each one of her girls and every time they do a chore she deposits like 10 cents each and every time they do something good she’ll reward them with money. I’m skeptical about this method though because I don’t want my kids growing up thinking that every time they do their chores they’ll get paid for it since I don’t get paid when i do my chores, lol!
I can’t wait to see what everyone else has to say!
Be careful how you frame your request, though. My neighbors were pushing their child as a babysitter pretty hard for a while. I stay at home with my kids–that’s what I’m here for. We just don’t have extra money for babysitters.
I would say that alot of empty nesters have more money than time so it never hurts to just put out the idea that your kids would like to help for some cash. We have an acre that we mow and we pay $10-$20 for the sticks depending on how many there are to pick up. We have about 50 mature trees on that acre so it can be a big job.
It depends on the age of the child! I started to babysit at the age of 13 to earn money. At age 16 I began to waitress and at 17 I worked in a grocery store as a cashier.
Yep, I started babysitting or working as a mother’s helper at a pretty young age too. My niece and her pre-teen friends have a jewelry business and they set up at local craft fairs.