The farmer’s market where I work has been around for 55 years. It started out as a roadside stand on a country road where Mr. Treadway put vegetables out on a table and had an honor system where people paid for any produce they took. As his children grew, it was their job to sit at the table, help the customers, and take care of the money. Today, the money system is still on the “old school” side. There is the option of writing the prices with pen and paper and then tallying with either your brain or a calculator. We can also use an iPad that totals the purchases and then run the credit card transactions through that. For a number of years, I used the old school pen and paper and calculated like I was taking a math test. This year I have gone to the iPad for efficiency. But I do count back the change myself using the counting up method. This past week a lot of the older customers have commented about me knowing the "right way" to count change.
I often hear from people in my generation and above that “kids these days” do not put emphasis on learning valuable life skills such as balancing a checkbook, living within a budget, or even counting back change. Counting change is a simple math concept. You pay cash for a purchase, the cashier hands you back the correct change, right? In our digital world, “plastic” has replaced cash for many consumers. While the “counting change” concept is used less and less in the everyday market place, it is still a much needed life skill for all. From a first job at McDonald’s to the concession stand at the football game, kids need to make correct change. Some of the first lessons in change making are taught at the elementary level, however without practice this skill often fades. Nowadays people rely on the cash register to tell them how much change to give back. (The iPad we use ast the farm doesn't tell us how much change to give back).
The digital invasion has replaced many “older” life skills. I do marvel at the skills these young whippersnappers have with their computers and phones. I have had to adapt to technology while my kids were born into the digital era and technology has always been a part of their lives. I am amazed what they can accomplish with their devices but I think I have amazed a few young people what I can accomplish with my not-so-techy brain.
Counting back change is a simple and essential skill as long as we are handling cash. The power goes out, or the battery runs down, and you are still able to do business. I find that I use less and less cash, I can't remember the last time I withdrew cash.
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