Getting the kids involved with your couponing can be a great way to teach them the value of money, how to shop and what to look for.
Financial Literacy for Kids
Starting as a newbie couponer can be a bit overwhelming. But, soon enough, you will find that you are a seasoned pro. When you first get started, your family may look at you like you are crazy. Mine did. I’ll never forget the first weekend, after I had studied all the great ways to save, that I had asked my husband to go to 7-Eleven and get me 4 newspapers. He looked at me like, Cindy, you have lost your mind for sure. But, I said, trust me, I’m giving this a try and we’ll see how it goes. It wound up to be a small investment for, what has turned out to be, a huge savings for our family. And, after years of doing this, my husband and my kids have felt confident enough to go out on their own and use coupons.
Here are some tips to get your family involved.
1. Let the Kids Help
This is a great opportunity to teach your kids the value of money. Depending on the age of your kids and how you organize your coupons, they can help you with any of the following:
- Cutting coupons
- Organize cut coupons and separate by store
- Filing inserts
- Throwing away expired coupons
- Help organize your stockpile
- Make a list of places you can donate items you got for Free that you won’t use
A fun experience for the kids and a great way to teach them about couponing, is to let them pick something in the circular they would like and to find a coupon that goes along with it. Then at the grocery store, it’s their job to find the item, put it in the cart and even give the coupon to the cashier.
2. Play The “Guess What I Spent” Guessing Game
I know this may sound silly, but this really gets the family, including your husband or wife involved. After you shop, pile your groceries on the table or counter and have everyone in your family guess how much you spent. In the beginning, their guesses will be high and they will be amazed that you actually spent such a small amount on all the stuff you bought.
Then, they will really begin to see just how this “silly couponing thing” you are doing is really saving the family money. My husband now always just says, “let me guess, it was free” when I ask him how much he thinks I paid. I think the game has gotten old for him 😉
3. Keep a jar with your savings
Each time you spend under your usual, pre-couponing days amount, place the savings in a jar. Have the family decide what the savings will be used for. When that jar starts to fill up, you’ll be amazed at how quickly they all want to get involved.
4. Start them out small
If you have a husband or wife that is a little shy when it comes to using coupons, then start them out small. Don’t send them out with store coupons that you stack with manufacturer coupons. Give them a simple transaction to start. And, even if they messed it up, tell them how great they did and how much money they saved.
One Big Couponing Family
In the end, you’ll end up with a family that is happy to help you and willing to wait for an item until it goes on sale. And, even willing to stop at the store for you to do a deal.
How do you get your family involved?
If you are new to couponing, you may want to check out the How to Use Coupons section where you will find a lot of answers to your questions.