Finance: Learning to Balance Your Accounts the Old-Fashioned Way

Nonetheless, knowing how to balance your account the old-fashioned way has its advantages. Even if you never plan to do the math yourself, it is valuable to understand what's happening as the software chugs away, so you can more easily resolve problems when they occur.

Allowance in Exchange for Chores?

Trash Talk

Take out the papers and the trash!
Or you won't get no spending cash...

Remember that old ditty from the Fab Fifties? Half a century later, it's the ''home rule'' in many households.

Sophomores: Independence-Bound

No longer the smallest fish in the high-school pond, tenth graders are on the move. With increased age comes increased responsibility, self-knowledge and -- most prized of all -- freedom. From driver's ed to dating, sophomores are independence-bound.

When Kids Want to Quit

Dilemma for Parents: Am I Raising "A Quitter"?

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Your Child, Your Money, and Online Auctions

The toy section of eBay reads like a Christmas list, and for consumers of all ages, this is an irresistible way to make a purchase: Place a bid, then bid higher, then hope against hope that you're not outbid by someone else.

For adults, being outbid on a coveted Beanie Baby may result in mild disappointment. For a child, it can be a crushing loss.

Family Budget Makeover: Cutting the Grocery Bill

Trying to save a few bucks? Cutting grocery bills can be a relatively painless way to make monthly savings. We went prowling for the best ways to spend less without making kitchen duty endless or meals tasteless. Here are some easy ways to change how you shop and how your family eats.

Before You Shop

Just before your teenager heads off to college, you should have “the talk” with them. Nope, not the SEX talk. There’s a pretty good chance they already know about that 3-letter word. We mean the consent talk; meaning ways to tell the opposite sex NO like you mean it and what to do if someone overall makes you feel uncomfortable through sexually-orientated actions.

Students and Credit Card Debt

Brought to you by the American School Counselor Association

Pros and Cons

When Parents Lose a Job: Talking to Kids About Layoffs

Pink Slips and Blue Moods Affect Children
Stock market meltdowns, dot-com deflations, bull and bear markets -- it's all lost on kids. But as America'slong-running period of prosperity loses steam and reports of layoffs make headlines, the term "economic downturn" is literally brought home.

The stress of entrance exams, applications, narrowing down acceptance letters and choosing a college is finally behind your teen. Academically they have spent at least the last four years focused on getting to this point and feel ready to succeed. However, there are many life skills teens need to know in order to be successful as they embark on their college career, and most of them you won’t find being taught in a school setting.