Expert: Anton Simunovic, technologist, entrepreneur, father of six and founder of threejars.com, an internet service teaching kids how to be responsible with money and the importance of giving back.

1. Practice Makes Perfect
Allowance is the best tool parents have in getting our kids to be responsible with money. With 18-24 year olds declaring personal bankruptcy faster than any other age group, we need to instill healthy financial habits in our kids before they leave the nest. Learning to be responsible with money — the primary objective of allowance — takes lots of practice. As parents, we readily understand hard work and practice is required for kids to become solid athletes or musicians. Yet, we are reluctant to empower our kids sufficiently to practice money. What a waste, we think! Trust me. It's better our kids learn from little "mistakes" today — when dollar amounts and consequences are low — than much larger ones later.

2. Embrace Technology
If we're lucky, our early money memories may conjure up thoughts of piggy banks, counting coins on bedspreads or updating passbook savings accounts. As parents, we want to recreate these fond memories for our kids. Our kids however, embrace technology. To them, technology is fun, engaging and immediate. Unlike parents, technology is consistent, accurate and never forgets, giving allowance the respect and dignity it deserves. ?

Technology can also be used to adjust your child's allowance to meet their personality. For instance, my three older kids hear the same lectures, go to the same schools and eat the same dinners, but their money styles couldn't be more different! One is a spender, the second a saver and the third can't wait to give her money away. Is one better than the other? ?Not really. While we all want to raise a saver, saving to the point of hoarding isn't healthy. A focus on money for its own sake makes us small and petty. Of course, it's not good to overspend or to be completely selfless either. Responsible money management requires balance and a respect for money.?

Use the Internet to allot a portion of every dollar your child earns to three jars: one for saving, the other two for spending and sharing. Technology can be used to tailor the amount placed in each jar according to your child's specific money style: for example, if your child is a spender, consider putting 60% in the save jar, 30% in the spend jar and 10% in the share jar to instill better habits. Technology allows your kids to visualize their money as a picture, where it comes alive and makes financial lessons more tangible. By graphically tracking decisions daily, kids quickly learn frivolous spending means less saving and less earned interest — not a great outcome. Sharing even a few dollars makes them feel good and grateful for what they already have, building self esteem.

3. Don't Tie Allowance to Chores
Of the thirteen million families in America that pay allowance, roughly half believe allowance should be tied to chores. The thinking goes that kids need to earn their allowance because that's how real life works. The other half believe that since mom and dad don't get paid for chores, why should the kids?? In my mind, allowance and chores are two completely separate issues. ?When it comes to chores tell the kids "Whoever lives in the house has to help manage the home —? case closed."?Our kids lose TV, Internet or cell phone privileges rather than money to ensure beds are made and the trash is taken out. ?Practicing money skills through allowance is too important an issue to gum-up with chores. Remember, paying effective allowance is our best tool to get our kids responsible with money before they leave the family nest.

— as told to Andrea Zimmerman

Expert: Dr. Leanne Liddicoat, a VSP Vision Care network optometrist.

1. Confusing those school screenings with eye exams.

"Too often, these quick screenings give parents a false sense of security. Parents think because their child's eyes have been checked in school, they don't need to see an optometrist, which isn't the case. In fact, sometimes screenings actually do more harm than good because it leaves many vision problems undetected. It's crucial that parents know the difference between eye exams and screenings. Only optometrists can see the health and development of your child's retinas and eye muscles."

"The American Optometric Association recommends that all children have a complete eye exam by an eye doctor at six months, three years and five years old. Between the ages of six and eighteen, your child should see an optometrist every two years, even if they've been screened by the school or pediatrician. Of course, if they're seeing poorly, you should schedule an exam sooner."

2. Relying on your child's opinion of their eyesight.?

"Kids that have impaired vision from birth have no idea what normal vision is like, so they don't know the difference. Also, some children either really want glasses or really don't want glasses, which may skew their opinion. That's why it's important to schedule regular eye exams, even if your child swears he can see just fine."

3. Leaving the sunglasses behind.

"Sunscreen isn't enough! Even on cloudy days, radiation can be strong, and the effects the UV rays have on the eyes over time can be devastating. And oftentimes, sun damage to the eyes cannot be fixed by an optometrist. It's never too young to put your child in sunglasses — younger ones often do better than the two- to three-year-olds. Your optometrist can help you choose a pair that's right for your child. Remember, the most important factor in sunglasses is 100% UVA and 100% UVB protection, along with a good fit and polycarbonate lenses for safety. And when you choose a pair, it's worth it to spend a little extra money on a pair that really protects your child's eyes."

As told to Andrea Zimmerman.

]]>Babble http://www.babble.com/common-parent-teacher-conference-mistakes/What are three most common mistakes parents make during parent-teacher conferences?

Expert: Suzanne Tingley, former teacher, principal, superintendant, author of How To Handle Difficult Parents: A Teacher's Survival Guide, and named a "Woman of Distinction" by the New York State Senate in 2007.

1. Go in with a plan, and ask questions that relate to your child's overall well-being, not just their academic progress.

Parents sometimes don't think about what they want to learn from the parent — teacher conference their school schedules. They go in as passive receptors of the information the teacher wants to give them. But, it's a good idea if they think about the conference beforehand, because most parents really want to know not only how their child is doing academically, but also how their child is doing socially. They also want to know "Does my kid have any friends?" And sometimes if they don't ask that, they're not going to get it. If they don't think about questions like that ahead of time, they're not going to get the information they want.

2. If there's a problem, ask the teacher about his or her game plan.
Sometimes when parents hear their child is having a problem, they don't ask: "What's the plan to correct it?" They let the teacher say "Well, he's behind in reading." Or "He's got this or that problem." And the parents don't respond, "Well what's the plan to correct that?" Along with that, they need to say "And what can we do to help?" What's the game plan here to work together to help the child? Because just getting the information that there is a problem isn't enough; and the child's issue is not your responsibility alone, it's something to work on constructively with the teacher.

3. Don't play mediator.
If the child has had a conflict with the teacher, the worst thing a parent can say, the thing that really really annoys teachers, is "And now we'd like to hear your side." When they put it that way it sounds as if the parents are stepping in to be the moderators between two equals. A five-year-old and a forty-five-year-old? As though the teacher and the child are siblings, the parents pronounce: "Sam says 'blah, blah, blah' and now we'd like to hear your side of the story." They should say something like "Our child is saying this at home, what do you think is going on?" Or "What's your take on this?" You should appeal to the teacher in an adult-to-adult manner, rather than play mediator as though they're brother and sister.

— As told to Emily Frost

Find Suzanne Tingley's How To Handle Difficult Parents from Cottonwood Press or on Amazon.com .

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