If you think your children are too young to teach money management to, then you are mistaken. The best time to let them know about financial matters is at an early age. And no, you don’t have to teach them the more complicated aspects of finance. What they need to know about are its fundamentals like the concept of money itself, and that is one topic your kids are never too young to learn.
It’s highly likely that your kids may already have an understanding of how money works considering how connected the world is to the Internet today. For all you know, they may have already come across material that focuses on investing for kids or something similar. Then again, money management is a subject that they will need your guidance with, and you should never miss that opportunity.
By guiding them through the basics of money management, you should be able to help your children develop a financial awareness that will surely serve them well as they grow up.
So how do you go about teaching your kids about money management?
Start with age-appropriate topics.
Very young children aren’t likely to grasp stocks and bonds and other complicated financial matters, so stick with topics that are appropriate to their age. Teaching them the concept of money itself, for example, would be a great place to start. With your guidance, your very young kids will already know how we all need to earn money to buy food and clothing, among other things.
For your older kids, lessons on the importance of a bank account as well as how credit works will be appropriate enough.
Teach them that money has to be earned.
You don’t want your kids believing that money is something that automatically comes out of an ATM. They must know that the money you use to provide for their needs is something that you work hard for. They need to understand that they must do the same as they grow older so they can buy the things they need and want.
The importance of having savings
Every child must learn the importance of saving up even at an early age. Explain to them how saving money today can help them buy the things they need or want in the future. A good and modern way to help them practice saving up is by using a chore app which helps them manage whatever allowance they earn from doing chores.
Work financial talk into everyday activities.
Teaching your kids about money management is not a one-time talk, and you’re done. Always try to talk about money matters even when you’re at the grocery, for example. Give your child a say in the buying decisions, like what they should buy given a choice between two brands of breakfast cereal, for example. Provide your kid some details about each brand, and just let them decide which one to get.
There is no better time to talk about money management to your kids than now. We live in a world where some people on social media can easily impress upon your kids their extravagant lifestyles. You don’t want your kids getting their money management lessons from them. You should be the ones giving them those lessons.
So don’t hesitate to talk to your children about money. You are, after all, doing them a huge favor. You are equipping them with the necessary financial knowledge that will help them get through life a little bit more easily than children who never got money management lessons from their parents.
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