The Best Free Way to Coordinate Your Family … and Teach Them about Money, Too!

PRINCETON, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

These days, it feels like the world is moving faster and faster – not only are parents busier, but children are increasingly scheduled. Coordinating calendars, chores, allowances and other common aspects of a typical family is a job in itself. For those families relying on paper posted on the refrigerator or mumbled comments on the way out the door, a new, easy-to-use tool from DoughMain can make this process of family coordination much easier and more efficient.

Today, DoughMain is launching a simpler, more convenient way to help families keep their lives organized. The DoughMain platform consists of a family calendar that is integrated with a chore tracker and an allowance/rewards tool. Parents set up their own customized DoughMain that serves as a secure micro-network for the family. Within each DoughMain, every family member can view their own responsibilities as well as the group's information. Parents control the information their children can access, such as the ability to create calendar entries or designate that a chore has been completed. Since information is updated in real-time, parents can instantly reward their children for positive behavior and/or accomplishments – either through DoughPoints (DoughMain's virtual currency) or an allowance.

The mobile version of DoughMain is scheduled to be released in September 2011, allowing all family members to stay connected and coordinated on-the-go.

“As a working parent, I had no idea what was on our paper calendar at home and neither did my children,” said Kenneth Damato, president and chief executive officer of DoughMain. “Now, I can connect to the DoughMain calendar and, at the same time, see what chores the kids still need to do before I get home. If they don't earn enough rewards points during the week, then they will not receive their allowance. The DoughMain platform fits nicely into our busy household.”

On top of its family coordination platform, DoughMain offers financial education, integrated with real-world financial experiences. Extensive research conducted by DoughMain amongst families showed that parents have a strong desire to increase the education and experiences their children have with money, money management and the United States' financial system. In fact, a 2008 Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy study revealed that only 48 percent of basic financial skills questions were answered correctly by high school seniors.

DoughMain delivers its financial education curriculum through three age-relevant gaming websites hosted on secure, safe platforms. Featuring teacher-developed content, the sites include: TheFunVault.com, a Flash game portal teaching basic money lessons to children ages five to nine; SandDollarCity.com, a multiplayer virtual world where children ages eight to 12 manage a family candy shop; and IRuleMoney.com, a site featuring financial-oriented content and contests tailored to teenagers.

“I watched my own children playing computer games and realized how much they really are learning. We are excited to offer these fun, free gaming experiences to all families that want to use them – whether or not they are members of DoughMain,” said David Reim, chief marketing officer of DoughMain. “Moreover, our gaming websites are safe, secure and free of advertisements – things that will make parents happy.”

To learn more about how DoughMain helps parents coordinate, teach and reward their children, please visit DoughMain.com.

About DoughMain

DoughMain is the first and only service to combine family coordination and financial education into one simple and convenient platform. Helping families manage their lives while empowering them to become better educated about money, DoughMain offers a suite of on- and off-line services, including an integrated family calendar, chore tracker, allowance/rewards tool and three age-relevant gaming websites: TheFunVault.com (ages 5-9), SandDollarCity.com (ages 8-12) and IRuleMoney.com (ages 13-19). To learn more about DoughMain, please visit DoughMain.com.