Simple Interest

What a Stud!!!

So Jake has been super interested in money lately. He was always gathering it up and asking me how much a handful of coins was worth and what he could buy with it. I took him to the dollar store a few times to spend it, but the toys we picked out usually never even survived the car ride home. With Ben proding me to open a bank account for him, I finally decided to give him a lesson on simple interest and what happens when we put our money in the bank to save for college and his mission. I wanted it to be his choice to save. I explained to him that mommy and daddy put their money in the bank (so we don't lose it), and every month, they give us some extra money back. I explained that if he put all his quarters in the bank, that every once in a while, they would give him an extra quarter. His eyes got all sparkly and wide. By the end of our discussion, he was so excited to put his money in savings! We spent the next few days rolling all of his coins, then he was ready to take them to the bank. Wells Fargo has a great program for kids. Everytime they make a deposit, they get to earn points towards different prizes. The first one he earned was this carriage piggy bank. He looks forward to getting his statement in the mail every month and to see how much he has saved, and to see how much the bank "gave" him. We haven't been as diligent about reading this summer, but he is really learning about money and how we can accumulate more of it when we save. What a chip off the old block. I'll let those of you who know us well to figure out which block I am referring to. That's one valuable money lesson out of the way, now on to tithing :)