Tag Archive for teaching kids about giving

Virtual Piggy: The Safe Way For Kids To Shop Online @FollowPiggy #VirtualPiggy

December 22, 2012 Uncategorized No comments

Virtual Piggy is the safest way for children to save, spend, and give online.

This year, for the first time, Jojo (age 8) had saved up $20 that he wanted to spend on Lego.

The tooth fairy had been kind to him.

I took him to the Lego store thinking that he could probably find something there. To my horror, $20 buys Jack Squat at the Lego Store, so I told him we would go to Target instead. 

He wanted to buy 2 sets for $10 each. At the Target store we found only one set under $11. So we went home and searched online. 

Did Jojo have a way to pay for things online? No. No he did not. 

Enter VIRTUAL PIGGY, a way for kids to shop online without having access to your credit card.

A parent registers their account, providing information such as their preferred credit card for future purchases, and a shipping address. Then, the parent can create accounts for each of their children and establish detailed parental controls (such as approved merchants, transaction limits, levels of transaction approvals). Because financial and shipping information is stored in the parent account, the child never has access to it. The child is then able to check out at Virtual Piggy merchants, using only their username and password.

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This is a great way for children to feel independent, like the way Jojo beamed with pride when he handed over his very own money in the check out line for the first time…but it also protects your information.

Your credit card information is kept under our PCI-DSS Level 1 Certified security, the highest level available.

Because this information is stored under your parent account, your child never has access to it.

You can set monthly allowance amounts, savings targets and charity goals.

You also have the option to require approval on every purchase your child makes, or just some of them. You can set a maximum limit per transaction, per day or per week, or restrict which merchants your child is able to shop at.

The child has to balance spending and savings goals, and can always see their purchase history. By putting your child into a real world environment where they’re able to make their own purchases, you’re giving them their first experience with managing a budget while holding onto the reigns yourself!

Check out Virtual Piggy on facebook and @FollowPiggy on Twitter!

This video is sponsored by Splash Creative Media on behalf of Virtual Piggy. 

Members Unite To Support Amazing Projects #CleverMembersUnite #spon

March 7, 2012 Uncategorized One comment


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It is so important to me that my children be generous and caring.

Growing up in a third world country where we encountered beggars and people living on the streets, I try to imagine how such sights strike them.

Without getting into the debate of whether it is appropriate to give money directly to beggars or not, I think it is important for children to see giving in action.

Through the Clever Girls Collective, I was introduced to Members Unite.

Members Unite is a simple, interactive, fun way to fund amazing projects. We find the most interesting, impactful, meaningful projects and then let our members figure out which ones get funded. This is possible because the projects are funded through member contributions. And the members ultimately control the outcome each month. We’re all in this together. There’s a saying we love… One person giving $20 is a drop in the ocean. One thousand people giving $20 brings clean water to a village for a lifetime. Members Unite helps us all do more than we could do on our own.

 

Looking at the projects through a child’s eyes made me think about them differently than I would through my Cynical Adult eyes.

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For example, some of the projects involve grand but impractical gestures, such as giving balloons or smiley face cards to lots of people to brighten their day.

To a kid that sounds pretty awesome, but when I read it as a grumpy adult, I am more wont to vote for projects such as the DonorsChoose.org effort that helps get supplies for teachers in US public schools.

I was a teacher for more than 10 years. Sometimes, I had to use my own money to buy whiteboard markers and even to make photocopies for exams and other handouts.

I would often plan lessons using my own personal resources or things I found free online.

We ranked all of the projects on Members Unite, but I gave the most stars to the DonorsChoose.org project.

The project with the most votes will get $5,000 to their cause!

It is a meaningful exercise to sit down with your children and read about each of the projects, and allow them to vote for what stirs their little hearts.

I think it would be fun to have a  Members Unite account for each child, to let them really put thought into making their choice. Definitely an educational and philanthropic experience for only $5 each month.

If you sign up for a paid membership with Members Unite by March 31, leave me a comment letting me know what projects you voted for.