"If you don't have money, just pay with PayPay." Money education in our home that started from my son's shocking remark

Hello, I'm Chocomama.
Today, I will write about the "money studies" I do with my son.

■ Don't you ever spend it all?

My son is the type who
wants to buy things immediately when he thinks he "wants" them.
Even when I give him an allowance, before I know it, he has spent it all.
And there were times later when he would say, "I actually wanted that after all."
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Actually, I used to work as a banker, in charge of an area with 13 branches, and was in a position to teach asset management, such as being a seminar instructor and accompanying sales staff.

Explaining how money works is my specialty when dealing with adults.
And yet...
My knowledge and experience from back then were completely useless on the "little alien (my son)" in our home...

There was an incident that
made me tremble even more.
⸻

■ If you don't have money, just pay with PayPay!

In this era of electronic money, I feel that
the form of money has become harder to see.

One day, my son said this:

"If you don't have money, you should just pay with PayPay!"

When I heard that, I was honestly a bit shocked.

He doesn't yet have the sense that money is "decreasing," but sees it only as "something you can pay with."
I felt that

"I have to properly teach him from the value of 1 yen."That is why, first, to make money "visible," I started by using a

piggy bank.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

■ What I realized after researching

While researching, I learned that children with traits like ADHD tend to have a stronger feeling of "I want it now."


However, my son has not been diagnosed, and this is just the stage where I, as a parent, feel he has such tendencies based on his daily behavior.

Actually, there were times when
・He wants to buy things immediately when he thinks he wants them

・He spends all his money right away

Such behavior is said to be related to a way of thinking called

So, I started thinking about ways to support him with a system

instead of "making him endure."
⸻

■ Our home's "method of dividing money into 3 parts"

So I started a simple rule of dividing money into 3 parts.
⸻

① Money to give to Mom (Long-term)

This is money I keep, telling him, "I'll grow this for you."

・Money not to be used immediately
・Money for the future

The money I keep is put into savings or investment trusts.

👉 It's the image of "asset management" for adults.
⸻

② Money to save in a piggy bank (Medium-term)

This is money saved


steadily through things like:・Getting 100 points on a test (100 to 500 yen)

・Helping out
We decide on a timing, such as "opening it in one year."By the way, in my son's case, he had saved about 4,000 yen this way. He also seemed a bit happy, saying, "I can save this much!!

" 👉 It becomes an experience of saving for a goal.
⸻

③ Money in the wallet (Short-term)

This is money he can use freely.

・Buying things he wants
・Choosing for himself

However, since my son is still in the lower grades,
I divide his money into a main wallet kept at home and a
sub-wallet he carries around, with 1000 yen in the sub-wallet.


👉 I intentionally use this as a place for him to experience failure.
⸻

■ Key points of this method

This three-way division is based on the concept of dividing money into

・Money to spend
・Money to save
・Money to grow

, which
is actually often used in adult financial management as well.

It is often explained using a diagram divided into three circles, and while simple, it is a very essential way of thinking.

⸻

・Applying this to adult money management

Money can be broadly divided into

・Short-term (money to spend immediately)
・Medium-term (money to use within a few years)
・Long-term (money to grow for the future)

.
⸻
■ Short-term (money to spend immediately)
・Cash
・Ordinary savings

This is money for living expenses or money you plan to use soon.
It is important that there is no risk of losing the principal and that it can be used at any time.
⸻
■ Medium-term (money to use within a few years)
・Fixed deposits
・Bonds
・(Stable investment trusts)

This refers to money you plan to use within a few years, such as for education expenses or large expenditures. The idea is to increase it a little while prioritizing not losing a significant amount.
⸻

■ Long-term (money to grow for the future)・Stocks
・Investment trusts (index funds, etc.)


This is money you won't use immediately, with the premise of growing it over time. Although there are price fluctuations,
by looking at it long-term, growth can be expected. ⸻
※ Since the nature of investment trusts changes depending on their contents, I consider stable types as medium-term and growth types as long-term.
⸻

■ Changes I actually felt

Since switching to this method,

・"I spent it all" has decreased
・He started saying "I'll put this in my piggy bank" on his own
・He started thinking a little before choosing what he wants

Although it's little by little, I have started to see changes.
⸻

■ What I am conscious of as a parent

What I value here is not saying "be patient," but

letting him choose.
・Spend it now?
・Save it?
・Deposit it?

I try to let him gain the experience of deciding for himself as much as possible.

⸻

■ Summary

How to use money is not something you learn all at once.
Regardless of whether there are specific characteristics or not,

I think it is a difficult thing for children.
My son is still a new second grader, and
he doesn't yet understand the value of money or how to handle it.

That is why I feel it is important to

create a system for him now, rather than forcing him to be patient.
I would be happy if this method could be a reference for someone. ⸻

※ This article is not based on professional diagnosis, but is written as a real-life experience at home.
⸻

■ Finally
How do you handle pocket money in your home? If you'd like, please let me know in the comments 😊