Never too Early to Teach Children About Money

With the continuing decline in economic fortunes, adults the world over find themselves “tightening the belt” and setting budgets to get through the tough times. Rather than sheltering our children from the monetary world, now is the perfect time to teach them about the value of money, living frugally, and spending wisely.

1. Talk About Money as Soon as Possible

Since money and finance is such a huge part of successfully navigating the “real world”, we would be remiss not to start talking about money the minute our children begin to count.

2. Maintain a Weekly Allowance

There are a lot of conflicting views about whether or not an allowance should be directly tied to work done around the house. I don’t like the idea of paying my children to help around the house – chores and cleaning come with the territory of being contributing members of the household, which are lessons I believe linking with an allowance would detract from.

Remember: An allowance should never be a tool used to punish since it is so important to teach children about planning and managing their money. By making it something that can be taken away when the child misbehaves, we lower it to the objective level of a video game or favourite toy – sending the message that money is no more important than other possessions.

3. Respect Money

Children learn best by imitation. You don’t have to share details of your financial situation with your children in order for them to pick up on your habits – if you save your money and don’t buy items you can’t afford, your children will pick up on it; likewise if you are prone to buy the latest goods using your credit card, that will come to be ingrained in the minds of your children.