As parents begin to think about the back to school and college season, money is something constantly on their minds. School is expensive enough\u00a0as it is and the little things\u00a0really add up. Choosing the best way to help your children with their expenses without giving them too much latitude is a real juggling act.<\/p>\n
Should I be concerned about giving my child cash?<\/strong><\/p>\n Yes you should. Cash is the most popular form of payment for many illicit temptations – including drugs.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n According to the NCPIE<\/a>: \u201cstudents misuse prescription stimulants to ‘get in the zone’ or pull all night study sessions – a habit that is most likely to begin in college\u201d<\/p>\n Cash is a scary thing in the hands of a student and you can prevent that.<\/p>\n How?<\/strong><\/p>\n Buy\u00a0gift cards!<\/p>\n Look around your local area, and find the restaurants, grocery stores and spas where\u00a0your child is most likely to spend their allowance. Buy gift cards to the places they will probably frequent to\u00a0avoid having to give them cash.<\/p>\n What you are essentially doing is giving them a custom\u00a0budget that you can control. And, you are preventing them from getting themselves into trouble. (Yes, there\u2019s always a possibility that they will sell<\/a> it, but they will be getting less than face value of the card). You are also giving them a valuable lesson in controlling and keeping track of their spending.<\/p>\n Gawker.com goes through a list of tweets of people whose \u201cChristmas was ruined\u201d when they received gift cards instead of cash.<\/p>\n Some real tweets:<\/p>\n Ugh thanks for the gift cards, now I can’t buy drugs.<\/p>\n \u2014 Gursky (@gurskyman) December 26, 2012<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n