We’ve been around and around the subject of how coupons can benefit your family. We’ve talked about the direct and indirect impacts it can have from reducing your household expenses to increasing your health by focusing on homemade dinners. Have you ever thought of the impact coupons can have on your children? Or better yet…how you can use coupons to teach your children?

There is the obvious outcome: if our kids see us working to save money and make wise decisions they will learn that behavior as well. My four year old absolutely grasps the concept of using coupons…as early as 3years old he would go through the groceries and ask me if it was “For Sale” (on sale) and if I used coupons. When we walk through the store and the kids start to ask for items that are not on our list I will ask them if they have a coupon…I’ve only been burned by this once!

If we get a little creative, we can find other ways to use coupons to influence and teach our kids. For the very young children why not show them pictures on the coupons and ask them to find that item on the shelf? Ask them to identify the items on the coupons…talk about the colors in the pictures. This will work to help improve their memory skills and their ability to identify objects.

As they grow start working on numbers. Have them tell you what the different numbers on the coupons are. Can they find numbers in sequential order? What about combining numbers (“See how there is a 7 and then a 5? This makes 75”). When they are a little older they can begin to learn about math…coupons double can you tell me what this coupon is worth?

If you do any level of couponing you realize that you need to keep those tiny pieces of paper organized. Teaching kids to help sort, file or stack strengthens their organizational skills.

Motor skills like cutting can be practiced by helping you cut coupons! It may take him 5 minutes per coupon…but my four year old loves to help me cut! Even my 2 year old joins in the fun. She can’t cut the actual coupons but she can cut on paper or scraps and sit with us while we do it.

Talk with your kids about why you use coupons. What are your family’s goals? It is never too early for kids to learn to set goals…to work towards something and know that delayed gratification is not only a part of life…but reaching that goal is a reward in of itself. My son knows that we are working extra hard this year to save money to put down on a new house and he talks about it whenever we go to the store.

What are some ways that you can use coupons to teach your kids? Join the discussion on the Shop Talk Blog at LJWorld.com!