If you ask me, comparison shopping is the holy grail of healthy spending habits. By teaching kids about being smart shoppers we are also helping them learn to make confident decisions as they grow up.
To teach the concept of bargain hunting with purpose (that's how I feel about comparison shopping), it's better to use an item that your kids are already interested in.
One easy way to teach them to compare pricing in different stores for the same item is to sit on a Sunday morning with your kids and the chain drugstore weekly flyer. Ask them to look for the pricing on an identical single snack or cereal box on the different flyers, track the price and circle the winning flyer price. Along the same lines, you could visit each drugstore and show them how to look at the pricing label before buying and why picking the less pricey item is the best choice.
Another way to approach comparison shopping is by giving them a set budget to purchase a small list of items. This way, they will have to either pick a generic version of the items or choose a different size to make the budget work. This will open the discussion about quality. There's more to price comparison than comparing sizes alone – you also need to consider durability and wear.
Having a set budget will also open the door to chat about how money is not endless and there can be consequences by paying more than what was budgeted for. Do this exercise for a few months to show them the fruits of being a smart consumer. Have a mason jar or other transparent bottle where they can put the money saved. This will be a visual reminder of how being a good comparison shopper pays off – literally!
Yoly Mason, a blogger living in Orlando, Florida, wants to live in a world where Latinas can enjoy an abundant life with a small budget, and being in debt is as out of style as the rotary phone.
Image via iStock
