Loaded question. Why should this be an either/or thing? ALL kids should know how to manage money, so that they can be self-sufficient. Just because mom and dad are leaving you an inheritance doesn't mean you get to loaf around in mom and dad's basement!
My kids (6 and 7) are learning that if they PROVE they can be faithful with little, they will be given more...not in the sense that I'll disinherit them if they mess up (messing up is part of being a kid), but in the sense that I will trust them with more responsibility (with money, in this case, but also with many other things) as they show themselves capable. I *expect* that they will be successful, which gives them the confidence to succeed, rather than expecting them to fail and making them start discouraged. It's true for life as it is for money.
And no, before anyone makes assumptions, I'm not rolling in money by any stretch. Just trying to be faithful with what *I've* been given so that my kids have an example to follow (an example which will include leaving money for future generations). Because I grew up with parents who were great at earning money but terrible at managing it, and who now have very little to show for their years of hard work. I want my kids to learn at home while they are young, rather than when they get to retirement and find themselves in an inescapable hole.
Loaded question. Why should this be an either/or thing? ALL kids should know how to manage money, so that they can be self-sufficient. Just because mom and dad are leaving you an inheritance doesn't mean you get to loaf around in mom and dad's basement!
My kids (6 and 7) are learning that if they PROVE they can be faithful with little, they will be given more...not in the sense that I'll disinherit them if they mess up (messing up is part of being a kid), but in the sense that I will trust them with more responsibility (with money, in this case, but also with many other things) as they show themselves capable. I *expect* that they will be successful, which gives them the confidence to succeed, rather than expecting them to fail and making them start discouraged. It's true for life as it is for money.
And no, before anyone makes assumptions, I'm not rolling in money by any stretch. Just trying to be faithful with what *I've* been given so that my kids have an example to follow (an example which will include leaving money for future generations). Because I grew up with parents who were great at earning money but terrible at managing it, and who now have very little to show for their years of hard work. I want my kids to learn at home while they are young, rather than when they get to retirement and find themselves in an inescapable hole.