Summer is drawing ever-closer, and we’re all feeling the heat. Not only does summer mean more sweltering days sitting in the sun, but if you’re a family with kids in school, it also means finding countless ways to keep your youngsters busy for a whole six weeks. The concept of the summer holidays can be a difficult one to cope with for some parents, particularly when expectations are high for daily adventures and experiences.

The good news is that the summer holidays don’t have to be a drain on your resources. With a little bit of planning, you can transform them into a useful opportunity to teach your kids a thing or two about budgeting, and cash responsibilities. Here are a few ways that you can teach your kids about money before the new year starts up again.

Give them a Holiday Allowance
Instead of randomly saying yes or no to the things that your children want to do or buy, why not let them be in charge of their own purchases? You probably have a good idea of how much money you can spend on entertainment for the kids each week – thanks to your handy family budget. So, hand a portion of that money over to your youngsters and let them decide what they do with it.

The key to making this strategy work is remembering that you need to stick to your budget once you’ve set it. That means that if you give your kids £30 to last the whole week and they waste it toys and sweets the first day, you can’t just give them another £10 to go to the cinema. It might be hard to say no, but you’ll teach your youngsters some important lessons in the long-term.

Let Them Get a Summer Job
If your kids are old enough, then a summer job could be a great way to teach them a thing or two about the importance of cash and budgeting. When your children have to use their own money to pay for things, and they have to work for that cash, they begin to see the value in what they spend. Something small like a part-time job at a local store or a paper round can be a great way to teach responsibility.

Besides learning about the value of hard work, your children may also start to learn about what kind of work they prefer doing, which can be extremely valuable as they head into the next stages of their academic lives.

Take them Grocery Shopping
For your younger kids, a trip to the supermarket accomplishes two things. First of all – it gets them out of the house. Secondly, it provides them with a fantastic learning opportunity. When you’re inside the shop, give them a list, or a calculator app on your phone, and ask them to add up everything you’re buying, so you can make sure that you’re sticking to a budget.

Encourage them to suggest ways that you can cut down on expenses, and if they find a way to save you money, you can always consider using the cash you have left over to buy them a small treat like a candy bar. This will help to demonstrate the value of being frugal.

Go Comparison Shopping Together
Although this might not work with older children, you can always try to teach your younger kids a thing or two about comparison shopping by making a game out of finding the best price. When you make frugality a hunt for the best deals, you can get your kids excited about the concept of saving money. Plus, they might also be willing to try items from different brands that they would otherwise ignore if it means they win the game.

Practice Becoming Self-Sufficient
Summer might be one of the best seasons for learning how to become a self-sufficient family. While this process can be intimidating, it’s worth noting that if you do it properly, you can save a serious amount of cash. For instance, while the summer is warm, and your kids want to be out in the garden, ask them to help you plant your own vegetables and fruits.

Not only will this save you some cash when you go to the supermarket, but it will also teach your children about the value of getting things from the earth. Remember, you can use freshly-grown veggies not just in your regular meals, but also in home-made baby food recipes too.

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