ЕГЭ – диалог (интервью) 25 с вопросами и выбором ответов

1. What is TRUE about the allowance parents give to children?
1) It should be as much as children want.
2) Its amount varies in different families.
3) It should be either weekly or monthly.

2. What, according to Lora Johns, should parents NOT do when giving pocket money?
1) Give more after kids have spent it.
2) Teach children how to spend it.
3) Discourage children to spend it quickly.

3. What does Lora Johns say about kids earning pocket money?
1) They should use it to start a business.
2) Children should be required to give money to charities.
3) Routine chores shouldn’t be paid.

4. What does Lora Johns NOT list as a positive thing to do with pocket money?
1) Putting it aside.
2) Buying presents.
3) Giving it to friends.

5. How do banks benefit from offering services to children?
1) The children bring their parents to the bank.
2) The children become clients in the future.
3) The banks spend less money on advertising.

6. According to Lora Johns, saving teaches children to
1) budget.
2) invest in banks.
3) set costly goals.

7. What, according to Lora Johns, is good about having a savings account for a child?
1) A child can finally have a big sum of money.
2) It teaches some basic rules of investing your money.
3) The money is later invested in business.

1 – 2
2 – 1
3 – 3
4 – 3
5 – 2
6 – 1
7 – 2

Presenter: Hello, everybody, and welcome to our weekly program for parents. Every week we invite experts to talk about the burning issues that parents have when bringing up their children. Today’s expert is Lora Johns.
Lora Johns: Good afternoon.
Presenter: Lora, what exactly are you going to talk about today?
Lora Johns: Today I’d like to talk about kids and pocket money.
Presenter: That’s definitely an important topic for our listeners!
Lora Johns: Many children first learn the value of money by receiving an allowance. The idea is to let children learn from experience at an age when financial mistakes are not very costly.
Presenter: Sounds wise. So, how much money do parents usually give to their kids?
Lora Johns: The amount of money that parents give to their children differs from family to family. Timing is another consideration. Some children get a weekly allowance, others get a monthly allowance; any regular time period is OK. What’s important is that parents should make clear what, if anything, the child is expected to buy with the money.
Presenter: Is that so important?
Lora Johns: It’s crucial! At first, young children often spend all of their allowance too quickly after they receive it. If they do this, they learn the hard way that they need to have a personal budget. When I work with parents, I always advise that they not give their kids any more money until the next allowance. The object is to show young people that a budget demands choices between spending and saving. Older children should be responsible enough to save money for larger costs, like clothing or electronics.
Presenter: I know many people give their children pocket money for doing chores around the house. What do you think? Is that a good idea?
Lora Johns: Many experts who have written on the subject of allowances say it’s not a good idea to pay your child for doing regular household chores, like washing the dinner dishes. These jobs are just a normal part of family life. Paying children to do extra work around the house, however, can be useful. It can even provide an understanding of how a business works.
Presenter: So, pocket money is a positive thing after all?
Lora Johns: It can be. Allowances give children a chance to experience the things they can do with money. They can share it in the form of gifts or donations to a good cause. They can use it to buy things they want. Or they can save and maybe even invest it.
Presenter: In your opinion, which lesson is the most important here?
Lora Johns: Definitely saving. It helps children understand that costly goals require sacrifice: you have to cut costs and plan for the future. Requiring children to save part of their allowance can also open the door to more saving and investing in the future. Many banks offer specialized accounts to help children and teenagers learn about personal finance. At the same time, of course, the banks are creating future customers.
Presenter: Could you explain how exactly it works?
Lora Johns: A savings account is an excellent way to learn about the power of compound interest. Interest rates on savings can be very low these days. But compounding works by paying interest on interest. So, for example, one dollar invested at two percent interest will earn two cents in the first year. The second year, the money will earn two percent of one dollar and two cents, and so on. That may not seem like a lot. But over time it adds up.
Presenter: Thank you, Lora.