Each woman laid out her goods on a mat - everything from food, rice, wine, and rum made from sugarcane to clothing, silver work and live animals. Although no money was known, they traded by barter, usually bartering rice. Modern Khmer society places great importance on the family and, within the traditional idea of the family, there are very established roles for the man and woman. The husband is considered to be the head of the family and is supposed to provide family members with shelter and food, while the wife takes charge of the family budget and all the tasks around the house. Traditionally, five is the desired number of children for a Cambodian family, however with the high Cambodian mortality rate, this means that women might have many pregnancies but might lose their children.
Contraceptives are only available in the cities and, even then, are very difficult to obtain.
Therefore, women often become pregnant even when they don't feel they are capable of having more children. Because the mother is so busy with all her responsibilities she often has to rely on her other children to assist in the care of her latest baby. Therefore, by the age of five, most children are expected to be able to take care of the younger children. Education has always been considered more important for boys than girls. In the past boys attended the local wat school in their village where they learned to read and write Khmer.