Easy Ways for Kids to Earn Money
The best way to learn the value of a dollar is to earn it yourself. Kids needn’t wait until they are 16 to start a job! Here are some practical ways they can begin earning money on their own!
Babysitting/parents helper. If your kids have a way with children, being a babysitter is a natural first choice. Parents want to know that a babysitter is responsible and well-prepared, so encourage your child to take a first aid class or basic babysitting class through an organization such as the Red Cross that offers certification. If your youngster is not old enough to babysit alone, no worries! He or she can offer services as a parent’s helper and still gain valuable experience caring for young children and helping with household chores, all while building good references for future babysitting jobs.
Pet sitting. Many pet owners find themselves too busy during the workday to give their pets the love and attention they desire. A pet companion can offer to walk neighborhood dogs, feed them, play with them and groom them! This is an especially appealing job for animal loving kids who don’t have pets of their own!
House cleaning. Kids can hum a happy working song while providing a cleaning service. Wash dishes, do windows, sweep, dust and vacuum!
House sitting. Kids can water the garden, take in mail and provide pet care or lawn care while neighbors are away.
Lawn care. With the change of seasons comes many opportunities to provide lawn services. Kids can rake leaves, mow yards, weed eat or shovel snow off driveways during the winter months.
Trash day service. Even the youngest family members can find ways to put their skills to use. Shawnee kids Sophie and Aaron Ewans started their first jobs last summer, taking their next door neighbors’ trash and recycling bins to the curb and back again on trash day. Neighbors paid them 25 cents each week, and by the end of the summer 5-year-old Aaron was close to his end goal of purchasing a Teenage Mutant Ninja figurine.
Mail retrieval. There’s nothing like front door service! Kids can bring mail or newspapers to a neighbor’s front door.
Lemonade stand/bake sale. Kids can put their culinary skills to the test by making brownies, cookies or cupcakes and offering drinks. (Homemade lemonade is always a nice touch, but a cooler full of soda works, too!) A family card table out on the driveway makes a great concession stand. Remind kids to make a price list!
Garage sale/resell. Kids can scour the house for their outgrown clothes and unused toys to sell in a garage sale. Better yet, they can offer to host a family garage sale! By doing all the work for Mom, Dad, Brother and Sister—cleaning and pricing items, and later manning the sale—the house gets a little cleaner and your little entrepreneur makes a commission!
Music lessons. If musically inclined, kids can offer to teach music lessons and host recitals.
Lauren Greenlee opened her first lemonade stand at 5 and taught violin lessons in high school. She writes from her Olathe home.