How did you earn your pocket money as a child ?
By Traceyjayne
@Traceyjayne (11506)
United Kingdom
August 2, 2025 10:07am CST
Like most folks, my first job was a ‘paper round ‘.
I was lucky that there was a paper shop, newsagents at the end of our small cul de sac , and my route was our street and the surrounding four or five streets. I had no distance to go and it wasn’t a big round if I’m honest.
I just delivered the morning papers as I was usually too busy after school.
Wednesday was hard as it was the day the tv listings books came out. Saturday was the worst, the papers were thicker and they nearly all had supplements too.
I didn’t do Sundays.
Did you have a paper round ?
Or maybe you had a different job ?
7 people like this
5 responses
@Vikingswest1 (7443)
• United States
2 Aug
I collected soda bottles and aluminum cans. The bottles were gold and just a few would earn you candy money. It took a lot of aluminum cans to make any real money.
I raked leaves in the fall. I shoveled driveways in the winter. I cut grass in the summer. I had a paper route for several years. It was 80 customers. Sundays were terrible. I took summers off from the route because I had to help on my Uncles farm and we spent a lot of time up at the cabin. My parents gave me fifty cents a week as an allowance. I had chores to do to earn my allowance.
There were many ways to make a few bucks.
@Traceyjayne (11506)
• United Kingdom
2 Aug
Wow you had lots of jobs ….you were certainly very busy. We saved cans at my previous workplace and you do indeed need a lot to make any money.
1 person likes this
@AmbiePam (121136)
• United States
2 Aug
Well, our church had a lot of kids, so pre aged 16 I babysat for church members kids. At 16 though, I got a part time job at a daycare while I went to college. I just loved those babies. I also think it’s a great form of birth control, to work at a daycare!
@Traceyjayne (11506)
• United Kingdom
2 Aug
lol …yes I know what you mean ….
I did babysitting when I was at college ….i was able to use the children as part of my case studies ….
1 person likes this
@DaddyEvil (174708)
• United States
2 Aug
I started working as a janitor at the middle school (grades 3 through 8) when I was 13 and kept the job until I turned 18 when I started working at a KFC.
I lived too far out in the country to deliver newspapers. One of my brothers drove me and my bike to the school and then I rode my bike the 7 miles home each evening after work.
@aninditasen (18202)
• Raurkela, India
3 Aug
We never earned anything as teenagers. Our parents got whatever we needed but not whatever we wanted.
