HOW OLD SHOULD A CHILD BE TO HAVE A JOB ?

[Keith B]

It really depends on the kid. School and extracurricular activities take up a lot of time these days. Our daughter didn't get a job until she was between her Junior and Senior year in High School due to being too busy otherwise. We also forced her to quit her server job at the country club the beginning of her sophomore year in college because they were working her too many hours and it would be way too much for her with her Internship at another company, her heavy class load and sorority stuff.

On the other hand, if a kid is not involved in a lot of productive activities and just comes home to sit and watch TV or play video games or surf the Internet then they need to get out and at least find a part time job by the time they are 16-17.

[MotherBear]

I started "working" when I was 6 or 7 -- moms in the neighborhood would pay me some pocket change to sit on their couches for 10-15 minutes and "watch" their sleeping babies while they went to pick their older kids up from school. From there it was plant-sitting, pet-sitting, babysitting, cleaning up at a neighbor's pool after she was done teaching swimming lessons, and then on to a real job with a formal paycheck when I was 14 or 15. I worked all through college, including any holiday break that was a week or longer (those were usually full-time work; during the school year I was part-time). And of course there were always chores at home. I don't remember ever not having a job or some sort from the time I was about 8.

I think the age for an actual job is going to depend on the child and their level of responsibility and motivation, but if they want money they should be working. My 5-year-old has chores he can do if he wants to earn money (separate from the ones he has to do just because he exists and we feed him). If we go to a store and he tells me he wants something, I ask him what he thinks he should do about it. He knows the answer is that if he really wants something, he can ask me for work and earn money and save up for it. I don't just buy him toys and things except for his birthday and Christmas.

[RoyGBiv]

First job was delivering the Pennysaver at ~12. At ~14 I had a newspaper route every day, plus Pennysaver on Sunday. Back then we had to make our own Pennysaver bundles. We would get 7 or 8 or more stacks of store flyers delivered to the house on Thursday or Friday and spend the day Saturday picking and packing them into plastic bags. Then spend Sunday morning (quite early) walking the neighborhood delivering them from a grocery wagon. I had 3 friends that would help me pick and pack, so, I suppose you could say that at 12 years old I was a small business owner with 3 part-time employees.

Too bad I peaked so early...

[anygunanywhere]

It really depends on the kid. School and extracurricular activities take up a lot of time these days. Our daughter didn't get a job until she was between her Junior and Senior year in High School due to being too busy otherwise. We also forced her to quit her server job at the country club the beginning of her sophomore year in college because they were working her too many hours and it would be way too much for her with her Internship at another company, her heavy class load and sorority stuff.

On the other hand, if a kid is not involved in a lot of productive activities and just comes home to sit and watch TV or play video games or surf the Internet then they need to get out and at least find a part time job by the time they are 16-17.

Good point Keith.

Methinks parents place too much emphasis on the extracurriculars and not enough on actual work habits. There is a lot to be said in forming their skill set to help them support themselves. Some extracurricular activities do teach important lessons but for the most part it is either play time or a way for parents to pawn off their children to someone else so they do not have to deal with them.

I had a paper route when I was 12. I had to throw the paper 24/7/365 mornings and evenings on weekdays and mornings on weekends. As a result I am a rabid morning person who just can't wait to face the day and annoy those who dread facing the new day.

I think that our insistence on the work ethic is illustrated in both of our sons who worked while in high school and still were active in sports and UIL activities. They also worked whiile in college and at least had folding money to assist in their support.

Great topic.

Anygunanywhere

[Cedar Park Dad]

It really depends on the kid. School and extracurricular activities take up a lot of time these days. Our daughter didn't get a job until she was between her Junior and Senior year in High School due to being too busy otherwise. We also forced her to quit her server job at the country club the beginning of her sophomore year in college because they were working her too many hours and it would be way too much for her with her Internship at another company, her heavy class load and sorority stuff.

On the other hand, if a kid is not involved in a lot of productive activities and just comes home to sit and watch TV or play video games or surf the Internet then they need to get out and at least find a part time job by the time they are 16-17.

Good point Keith.

Methinks parents place too much emphasis on the extracurriculars and not enough on actual work habits. There is a lot to be said in forming their skill set to help them support themselves. Some extracurricular activities do teach important lessons but for the most part it is either play time or a way for parents to pawn off their children to someone else so they do not have to deal with them.

I had a paper route when I was 12. I had to throw the paper 24/7/365 mornings and evenings on weekdays and mornings on weekends. As a result I am a rabid morning person who just can't wait to face the day and annoy those who dread facing the new day.

I think that our insistence on the work ethic is illustrated in both of our sons who worked while in high school and still were active in sports and UIL activities. They also worked whiile in college and at least had folding money to assist in their support.

Great topic.

Anygunanywhere

Here's why. Work habits are utterly irrelevant towards the cv for getting into college.
In our circle of friends - extra curricular activites are not "play time, or a way to pawn off their children." Thats a bit insulting actually.
Its business. Its all about getting the kids into college / angling for scholarships. Thats THE driver.

[anygunanywhere]

Here's why. Work habits are utterly irrelevant towards the cv for getting into college.
In our circle of friends - extra curricular activites are not "play time, or a way to pawn off their children." Thats a bit insulting actually.
Its business. Its all about getting the kids into college / angling for scholarships. Thats THE driver.

I see your point. No insult intended, but it is a fact that my assertion is true in some cases.

Colleges should not look at extracurriculars. They should look at grades. The qualifications for scholarships re totally screwed away from what is necessary and colleges require way too much garbage courses that have no bearing on real life nor skill sets required to do a job.

Then again, now that I think about it, a lot of what I do as a manager has little to do with making the product I am supposed to deliver.

**SIGH**.

Anygunanywhere

[Keith B]

[Here's why. Work habits are utterly irrelevant towards the cv for getting into college.
In our circle of friends - extra curricular activites are not "play time, or a way to pawn off their children." Thats a bit insulting actually.
Its business. Its all about getting the kids into college / angling for scholarships. Thats THE driver.

Actually, it's not. There are a lot of things out there that are a waste of time. Miusic lessons/band, sports, martial arts, theater, etc. are all good activities. But these 'play dates' and after school 'play times' are a waste in my opinion if they are not structured with an education activity for any kid over the age of 12.

[filmtex]

I was 14 (which was legal in my home state) when I had my first job. Great experience and it was huge stepping stone to where I am today.

Yep. Me too. Pulling weeds at the local drive-in on saturdays. Then 30 or so hours a week at the neighborhood pharmacy. Worked my way up from stock boy to delivery driver and eventually pharmacy assistant. All before I graduated high school and joined the Navy. At 17. Also had a paper route and mowed lawns in 6-8th grade. When you're old enough to do the job, you're old enough to do it. As any farmer or rancher will tell you-"That's why we had those kids!"

[anygunanywhere]

I recall both of my boys were eager to get to mow the 1 3/4 acre homestead on the riding mower......until they actually had to do it as a chore and they found out it ate into their free time, it was hot, and the skeeters bit you.

Anygunanywhere

[MotherBear]

Here's why. Work habits are utterly irrelevant towards the cv for getting into college.
In our circle of friends - extra curricular activites are not "play time, or a way to pawn off their children." Thats a bit insulting actually.
Its business. Its all about getting the kids into college / angling for scholarships. Thats THE driver.

I disagree -- my work experience was a big help getting into college and it also earned me some significant scholarship money. Yes, a large part of that was because I found work in the area I was choosing to major in. After I had been admitted, I went and met with a professor in my department and showed her my portfolio of work and talked about my experience and interests. She called in the chair of the department and introduced us, showed him my work, and shortly thereafter I was offered a nice scholarship through the department -- not something they usually do for incoming freshmen. I was also able to get a job in student publications earlier than normal (usually they don't hire freshmen; I had a job offer by the end of my first semester and my sophomore year I had a promotion that included a scholarship). They also allowed me to pass through the intro-level classes earlier than usual, skip some requirements I could already show proficiency in, etc. I definitely would not say my work experience as irrelevant to college.

I did have my extracurricular activities, yes. I ran track, did student publications in high school, did youth group stuff, taught Sunday school, volunteered at the Humane Society, that sort of thing. On the other hand, I quit track my senior year because it interfered with my job. I stopped volunteering at the Humane Society at some point because there were some serious management issues and my parents told me I couldn't go anymore. I also quit National Honor Society because I decided it was a waste of my time. I drove my counselor nuts doing these things he thought were stupid, but I can't see as it hurt my college prospects. I got in everywhere I applied, with healthy scholarship offers. But I feel like the obsession with extracurricular activities solely for the purpose of college admissions is overblown. And for the record, I graduated from high school 10 years ago so while things have no doubt changed, I doubt they've changed THAT much.

[Cedar Park Dad]

Here's why. Work habits are utterly irrelevant towards the cv for getting into college.
In our circle of friends - extra curricular activites are not "play time, or a way to pawn off their children." Thats a bit insulting actually.
Its business. Its all about getting the kids into college / angling for scholarships. Thats THE driver.

Colleges should not look at extracurriculars. They should look at grades. The qualifications for scholarships re totally screwed away from what is necessary and colleges require way too much garbage courses that have no bearing on real life nor skill sets required to do a job.

Then again, now that I think about it, a lot of what I do as a manager has little to do with making the product I am supposed to deliver.

**SIGH**.

Anygunanywhere

Generally agreed.

[Cedar Park Dad]

[Here's why. Work habits are utterly irrelevant towards the cv for getting into college.
In our circle of friends - extra curricular activites are not "play time, or a way to pawn off their children." Thats a bit insulting actually.
Its business. Its all about getting the kids into college / angling for scholarships. Thats THE driver.

Actually, it's not. There are a lot of things out there that are a waste of time. Miusic lessons/band, sports, martial arts, theater, etc. are all good activities. But these 'play dates' and after school 'play times' are a waste in my opinion if they are not structured with an education activity for any kid over the age of 12.

Your opinion is irrelevant to whether or not kids will be accepted to college or get scholarships. In the real world schools look at all of those. What they don't look at is whether you started working at 13.

[Cedar Park Dad]

And for the record, I graduated from high school 10 years ago so while things have no doubt changed, I doubt they've changed THAT much.

It has.

[MotherBear]

And for the record, I graduated from high school 10 years ago so while things have no doubt changed, I doubt they've changed THAT much.

It has.

I still have a hard time believing that, but if it's the case then I guess my kids will be looking at alternate routes when the time comes. I refuse to spend all of our time and money on activities solely for the purpose of impressing a college admissions department -- especially if it comes at the cost of my kids actually learning to work.

The conventional wisdom when I was applying was that it was all about extracurriculars, but doing something different worked for me.

[OldGrumpy]

I started as an Apprentice to my brother in his lawn mowing business when I was six. He was an "Old Man" of eight. By the way, these were the orginal unpowered mowers. We also worked pulling bolls in the cotton fields, and whatever else we could do to turn a dollar for school clothes. Good part wasthat since we earned the money we got to buy the clothes we wanted .