by Julie Spaur

Created on: April 06, 2009

Remember the days when school was out for the summer and there were three long months of rest and relaxation to look forward to? How exciting that last day of school was; the anticipation waiting for the final bell to ring was nearly unbearable! When it finally rang, all of those wonderful lazy days of summer stretched out aheadendless days of sleeping in, staying up late and just hanging out doing whatever sounded fun at the time. There were no worries, no deadlines, and no responsibilities.

Oh how often I have wished for that scenario again in the past 20 plus years! I am sure many other worker bees around the country feel the same way I do. Obviously for most of us that is not an option since we are now Grown Up. We now have jobs and bills and all of the worries that go with them both nagging at us constantly.

So why then, do so many adults expect their teenage children to get out and get a job as soon as they are legally able to? As a parent myself, I feel that it is my responsibility to care for my child until he is out of high school. If he goes to college, then it is possible I will continue to finance him until he graduates. I don't expect him to buy his own clothes, food, or anything else. Granted, he doesn't have a car or a license because I refuse to pay the high cost of insurance, but I am still willing to provide transportation for him as needed, whether being in the form of driving him myself or giving him a bus pass.

I am not against a teenager working and earning his or her own money. If an ambitious teenager wants to get a job or find ways to earn money by chores or odd jobs, I think the family should be supportive of that decision, and they should all sit down to discuss how the child will balance school, social life and work. However, I don't think that any teen should feel like he or she is obligated to have to work to make spending money.

There are those who will argue that it is a good experience for a child to have his or her own job in order to become familiar with budgeting and the value of hard work. There are ways the parents can instill the same type of values at home, by rewarding the child for doing work around the house and by being a good role model when it comes to budgeting the household money.

Another argument those in favor of teenagers being required to work and earn their own pocket money could be that teenagers have such expensive tastes and demand to have the latest fashions, gadgets and trendy items, all of which add up quickly. It is true that most teens do want things, but I don't think that the answer is to have them go get a job so they can buy those things themselves. That action is only going to create another generation of mindless consumers.

If a child is constantly demanding expensive things, the issue that needs to be examined by the parent and the child is not whether the (insert item, gadget, fashion, etc..here) can be afforded, but more importantly, whether the coveted item is actually necessary and, if not, why does the child want it? This is a good time to teach a child to really think about why he or she wants something and to point out that buying things is not a way to make oneself feel better. Instead of expecting a child to work to earn his or her own pocket money, parents should be spending valuable time with the child and enjoying being together. This is a time to teach a child that the most important things in life cannot be purchased with money.

Childhood is fleeting. Adulthood goes on for a long time. Children should be allowed to be children until the last possible moment.

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