When Diamond Emory and her daughter Makaiah arrived at Wal-Mart to buy her fifth-grade school supplies, they encountered much to entice a young shopper.

A story from the AP says, the aisles of the store near their home in Groveport, Ohio, displayed glittery pencils, fancy folders, and "Hannah Montana" and "High School Musical" emblazoned everything.

But instead of indulging her 10-year old daughter, Emory carried a calculator and together they figured out what they could purchase and still stay within their budget.

"We're watching how we're spending our money and paying debt down aggressively," said Emory, "every penny counts."

With a household income of about $90,000 per year, Diamond and her husband, Eric, adopted a strict budget for the family early this year. As part of the plan, the Emorys have included their three children in the planning and decision making that such tight controls involve. They see outings like shopping for school supplies as a way to help Makaiah and their 5-year-old twins, Eric and Elyse, learn about handling money.

It's a significant step, because most children are not likely to get any lessons about handling money in the classroom. Just five states require instruction on the principles of money management for elementary school students, according to the JumpStart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy, an advocacy group. Only 20 states require or are considering mandated instruction on the topic for middle school or high school students.

Financial planner Susan Bruno sees back-to-school shopping as a perfect way to teach children a lesson before the first bell rings.