Grocery Store Learning

On our shopping adventure yesterday, I actually got out the trusty calculator to assure I stayed within my allotted amount at the grocery store.  Every time an item went in the cart it was added up on the calculator.

Well, Little J was shopping with me and he really wanted to push the buttons on my phone calculator.  I decided to give it a try.  It was a bit more complicated than a standard calculator since the buttons were not so cut and dry, but it worked out fantastic.

Here's How It Worked:

1.  Item went in the cart.  I would ask if we were adding (putting something in) or subtracting (taking something out).  Little J would hit the appropriate button for the operation.

2.  Then, he would ask how much the item cost.  I always round up to make sure to cover taxes.  I would give him the price and he would locate the number to enter it into the calculator. 

*I always made sure to check to ensure he entered the correct amount and did not erase the previous total... which did happen a couple of times.*

3.  Finally, he would press OK to get the total.  Every time a new total would appear we would try to guess the new number before he hit the "equal" button. 

Since JJ is only four he cannot read numbers above 10 and still gets confused with 1-10 at times as well.  SO...

He would say,  "it is going to be 8... 4 , mommy."

I would respond with, "that's right it is eighty-four."

After hearing "eighty" once or twice he would remember and reply the next time with the correct numeral instead of the correct numbers.

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Little J and I had so much fun at the store learning together.  He is really learning about the value of a dollar and wise choice making.

We would discuss things like...

* Would you rather have this one box of pop tarts which will last 2 days with you and your brother eating?  OR  Would you rather have an entire box of cereal that the whole family can eat on for the whole week?

We would discuss the fact that once the pop tarts were gone there would be no more breakfast during the week... of course, he would have eaten something, but that would not have made my point as clearly.

He really started to understand why I was making some of the choices that I did and not ask for as many things that are not necessary.

*  Product prices and generic/ store brand items... We talked about Kraft mac-n-cheese being the same thing as the store brand only it cost more mainly because the packaging is pretty and more appealing.

You could do so much more than I did, but it was only one trip to the store.

If you have any ideas on ways to keep the kids learning while shopping, please let me know.  I'd love to hear your ideas.