Managing My Allowance

Managing My Allowance -A more balanced approach to spending and saving.

I have used a Monopoly game on occasion over the years to give kids a chance to make change and use big bills. I also have money games where allowance and purchases are under $10. I like Managing My Allowance because it bridges that $ gap and is somewhere in between and it features a more balanced approach to spending and saving. I also like it because someone is not always heading for bankruptcy.

Managing My Allowance comes with a game board, a financial record (see image below), "monopoly" bills and coins made out of a card stock (printed front and back like the real thing). There is a spinner on the board that has numbers from 1 - 5.

The board has instructions on each space you will land on. In the four corners are opportunities to make a deposit in your college fund. There are seven spaces that allow you to collect $25 allowance. There are several squares that let you gain extra money through earning, winning or being gifted. There are a couple spaces that cause you to lose a turn. There are 4 categories for buying, with each being labeled with either A, B, C or D. Each will have a regular price and a sale price. If the spinner says SALE, you get that price. If it doesn't, you get the regular price. Here is an example from each category:

• A - Softball bat - regular price $109.95, sale price $69.50
• B - Electric toothbrush - regular price $99.50, sale price $74.95
• C - Track Jacket - regular $49.50, sale price $34.95
• D - 2 Big Top Circus tickets - Evening $24.50, Afternoon $15.00 

The financial sheet.

To see other games that help build money skills, check out my post on money games here.
 
Object:
Be the person who has saved the most money after someone has bought one item from each category and the game ends.

Set up:
Place the board in the middle of the players. Give each player $100. Place the rest of the money in an area that will be called the "bank". Give each player a piece of paper and ask them to write the word SAVINGS on it. This will serve as a place for each player to deposit his savings. Make a copy of the financial record sheet. Cut it into fourths and give each player one piece. Each player chooses a pawn and places it on the start square on the game board.

Play:
In turn, players will spin the spinner and advance that many spaces clockwise on the board. Follow the directions on the space where you land (more information about that above). When you land on a square that instructs you to deposit money in your college fund, it will be up to you how much to deposit. Play until someone purchases one item from each category. That will end the game and the person who has the most money from their college fund and money saved on purchases combined is the winner. 

Try this:

• Choose one person who needs to practice money skills to be the banker, or let each person make their own change.
• Exchange the cardboard coins for real coins. Get used to the weight, size and look of the real thing.
• Work on visual discrimination, coin identification, counting money, making change, saving money, planning, comparing prices, salves vs regular prices discussion, keeping a financial record, manual dexterity, socialization skills, process skills, play and leisure exploration and participation

If you are interested in purchasing this game or just want more information, click on the image below.

Ed Emberley's Christmas Drawing Book

Ed Emberley's Christmas Drawing Book

I'm a HUGE fan of Ed Emberley's drawing books, so about mid-November I got to wondering if he had a Christmas book. A short search later and I found Ed Emberley's Christmas Drawing Book, copyright 1989. I hurried over to Amazon to see if one of these 30 year old books was available. I found several people selling it and the price ranged from $66.75 to $106.99. Would someone REALLY pay that? So I started calling around and found it at a Half Price Books store by our house for $2.00, but not at their location. To have it shipped to their store would cost another $2.00, and an additional $2.00 to have it shipped to my home. So I ended up paying $7.02 for the book, tax and shipment to my house. That is comparable to what one of his current books sells for, so I was OK with that.

I have blogged several times about Ed Emberley books in past posts and I will put links to those books below. There are several reasons I like them so much: 

• His books make drawing easy. He shows simple, step-by-step progressions that even those who have a lot of trouble with drawing, writing and/or pencil control can follow (see image below).
• Kids who never dreamed they could draw are delighted once they see what they have created.
• His drawings include simple shapes and strokes that we all practice.
• Drawing is a good chance to practice spatial skills in a fun way.
• His drawings are whimsical and people love them.
• His drawings offer the chance to add details that require fine motor precision. Kids are practicing without even knowing it.
• His drawings make life easy for me since I don't have to keep coming up with new stuff on the fly.

 

Example of step-by-step drawing.

There are a couple things that are different about this book from his other books that I own. It is smaller, measuring 9.75" x 7.5". It has fewer pages/designs, and some of the designs are more involved, although they continue to follow the easy step-by-step progression. I'm heading out with it in my cart today and I can't wait to use it. (It includes two pages with lots of different looking pine trees and two pages with lots of different ornaments. I'm excited :)

Other Ed Emberley Drawing Books I have blogged about:

• Goody Gumbrops by Ed Emberley - Each animal starts with the same shape, a gumdrop. Concentrate on the details.
• Drawing Book of Faces by Ed Emberley - My favorite book overall. Draw all kinds of faces with many different expressions. Drawings are fairly short and expressive. Gives you the opportunity to talk about reading facial expressions, what the person may be doing to feel that way, how they feel, etc., if you are working on that. Also includes lots of different occupations.
• Ed Emberley's Fingerprint / Thumbprint Drawing Books - Use a thumb or fingerprint as the body of the animal or object then fill in the details. Sets the size as small so the individual will have to concentrate on small precise movements and pencil control.
• Expo Dry Erase board and markers - My favorite dry erase board and markers. I wouldn't use anything else. 

Since I have blogged about this author several times, I am going to copy and paste the following section from another post. Why reinvent the wheel...

Try this:

• Use colored pencils or markers. It adds just a bit more fun to be able to change colors.
• Start with a marker board and then move to colored pencils and paper. The marker board allows for quick erasure of mistakes and bright colors that pop. It's easy to glide along a smooth surface, but provides less feedback to the hand. I often start with a fine tip dry erase Expo marker, then move to the ultra fine for more pencil-like precision, then to pencil and paper. 
• Draw the initial step or two if you want to set the size. Some kids draw so small that if they start small then it is hard to add details.
• Describe what you are doing in spatial terms as you draw. 
• Let the individual choose the drawing to make the experience more positive, if the person does not like drawing or writing.
• Look at each new step and, before drawing, ask the individual what has changed, what has been added. Can they spot it on the picture?
• If the individual makes a mistake or omits something, note that their picture is a little different from the book and ask them to find the difference. Can they compare and spot it without help?
• Ask the individual to lead and you draw along.
• Have fun while you draw. Sing Christmas songs as you draw or chat as you go. What do you think is in that pretty package? Draw a picture of what you would like to find in yours. What is Santa doing in the bottom picture - dancing? exercising? tripping? How tall do you think is the tallest snowman every built? How tall can you draw one - count the balls as you draw.
 

• MORE TIPS - FROM MY EXPO DRY ERASE BOARD POST: 
• Work on diagonal lines for letters such as K, Y, X, W by drawing pictures that incorporate diagonal lines (whiskers, sharp teeth, legs, bird toes). Work on distal rotation by drawing pictures that incorporate small, colored-in circles (eyes, freckles, tassels, chicken pox). Work on rounded lines, such as needed for many lower case letters, by drawing pictures with rounded and wavy lines (ears, water, noses, hair). Sounds pretty basic, doesn't it? One big reason I like the Ed Emberley books is because I can quickly scan each page, looking for the shapes and feature(s) that I want to practice without having to make up a variety of my own drawings on the spot.
• Be short and precise with your verbal instructions as you model. Draw only one line or shape at a time and make sure they are following your instructions to the best of their ability. Drawings may start out looking rough, but typically improve over time with practice. The kids often recognize this and are very pleased when they see their improvement result in recognizable pictures.  
• Model how to start and stop on a line. I often just reach over and erase overflow with my finger and they quickly get the idea.
• Draw a picture and then erase and try to draw it again from memory.
• Use the Ed Emberley Book of Faces when working on emotions. Emphasize the shapes of the eyes, eyebrows and mouth when talking about reading facial expressions.
• Work on fine motor precision, pencil control, efficient pencil grasp, coordinated use of both hands, distal rotation, visual memory, spatial relations, visual closure, visual form constancy, visual motor integration, visual discrimination, motor planning, drawing and recognizing shapes, body awareness, proportion, executive functioning skills, play and leisure exploration and participation, reading facial expressions

If you are interested in purchasing this book you will have to search around. Try Half Price Books.