Snack Coupons?

[treeluva]

I was thinking about making "snack" coupons for the kids... give them a specific amount of coupons per week for snacks. Make a chart of how many coupons each snack costs, (fruits, vegies and other healthy snacks would cost one coupon; "unhealthy" snacks like chips, cookies, etc would cost 2 to 3 coupons)

I would buy the normal amount of food at the store that I always do, but I am thinking that if they had to "buy" the snacks that maybe they would last longer than 3 days... lol.

My only concern is this possibly creating bad feelings towards eating which could result in eating disorders later on. Perhaps healthy snacks should be free and only the junk snacks be worth coupons?

(I know the easiest way is to just not have junk snacks in the house. However, I am trying to move my family towards frugality at a rate that will not cause a riot. Plus, I am thinking that this can also serve as a way to teach the children the costs of having things they want.)

I don't give my children an allowance, although I am thinking about starting that as well. Each Sunday they could receive their allowance and their coupons for the week.

Does this sound like a bad idea?

[Momto2Boyz]

I actually think it sounds like a good idea. Not only will it help them ration out their snacks for the week, but it'll help them learn the value of a "coupon" (in place of money). If they run out of snack coupons for the week, you could also have them do odd jobs for more coupons, etc. Or give out extra coupons as rewards for good behavior.

I think it is a great idea! We are going to start rationing snacks around here. I am going to give each child a space on one of the lower cupboards that they can each reach, then they will each get a certain number of snacks on their shelf. I'll probably have to label the snacks too, so we don't have any arguing. But then they will be in charge of their snacks for the week. And when they run out...they run out. We were planning on starting that on Sunday. So I'll be sure to let you know how that turns out!

[pita1213]

i have 2 plastic containers that stay ont eh counter. there is one for each kid and it has their name on it. every sunday i put 14 snacks in them, 2 per day. i told the kids it was up to them if they wanted to eat more than 2 each day, but when they were gone they were gone till sunday when i refilled them. if they were extra hungry on one day, they could eat an extra snack. if they weren't very hungry on another day, they could save the snacks for later in teh week. there is no saving from week to week though. it's helped slow done on the consumption of snacks.
they do have some say as to what goes in them. when i do the main shopping trip once a month, they each get to pick a snack to go in their box. it only goes in their box so if it's something special that they really like, they dont have to worry about the other one eating them all. extras from the boxes of snacks go in another container that i put on the top shelf so they are out of sight, out of mind but are there for me to use to refill on sunday. when school starts, it will probably go down to one snack a day during the week since they usually only eat one snack when they get home from school. during the summer and on school breaks i allow for a morning and afternoon snack.

[angelbumpkin]

We use a snack coupon system. If coupons are all used durning the week no more snacks. This works well with my 9yr old w/bipolar.

[MisaLady]

Maybe try something like a "sweet or salty snack" coupon and "fruit or veg coupons". So, for instance, if you give out seven coupons, you could try giving out three sweet/salties and four fruit/veg or something like that. That way, you're not making any food "bad" - just something they get less of. I think it's very important not to create any bad feelings towards food - just the understanding that some snacks are more healthy than others.

Alternatively, you could tell them what the snack for the day is going to be. Then, give them a set number of coupons a week - 2 or 3 maybe. Call them "Treat Snacks" or "Personal Choice Snack". This means that YOU have control over what the healthy snack might be but they get the option of choosing something else - whether it be something else healthy or something not as healthy. I actually think I like this idea better because it teaches them to make choices and learn a bit of rationing. This would work even better if you made a snack schedule, so that your child knows "Ok... I only have one coupon left. I don't like apples. Tomorrow is apples for snack. I'll trade out on that day." And then, from time to time, you could make "regular snack" something not as healthy for a special treat, if you want.

[Monroe on a Budget]

i have 2 plastic containers that stay ont eh counter. there is one for each kid and it has their name on it.

My mom had assigned snack bins for all of us kids, and now my sister does that with her four kids.

It's an easy way to stop arguments over who ate what.