Imput on Explaining Money to Kids

http://www.amazon.com/s?ie=UTF8&rh=n%3A4%2Cp_27%3AWay... This link will take to a list of AWESOME books for kids. One of them Titled "It's Not What You've Got" is about money. I read & discuss it with my 5 yr old. He saves cans to "earn" money. He also saves all the change and money he gets. When we are out and he wants something, I ask him if he is willing to pay for it out of his money. The answer is always no. He is saving aluminum cans to buy a travel trailer for camping :). Plus he came across a man metal detecting. He spent an hour with him. The man was kind and patient. Now he is going to take his cans and get one, which would then give him two sources of income!! We are all about trying to teach them to be able to run their own businesses and not have to work for others. Oh and he has a savings account at Bank Atlantic. We save our change & take it to the bank, he puts it in the change machine. Takes his receipt and deposit slip up to the counter and does his deposit. They make a big fuss and he gets a lollipop. Great experience

I have a 5 1/2 and 3 year old (both boys). About 6 months ago my oldest started to recognize the different types of coins and started counting money. So, we put him on an allowance schedule. For everything he does on his chore chart he gets a quarter or two depending on the task. Now, when we go to Target or something and he sees something he wants he can pay attention to how much it costs and he knows how much money he needs to save. He has learned that it isn't easy to save for things that are $20. Right now he is trying to save for something that is $25 and it is killing him. I am not sure if he will be able to wait that long! :-)

Before all of this - when he could count and recognize what numbers were higher or lower, I would give him $5 or $10 depending on what I could afford and tell him he could buy what ever he wanted - as long as it didn't go over that amount. I do this with my 3 year old now.

Hope this helps as I'm not sure how old your children are.

Sam

I have been teaching kids and teens about money since 2002 in camp that is fun and highly effective. I even wrote a short article called Three Keys to Raising Money Savvy Kids. You can get it here: http://www.creativewealthintl.org or email us and we'll send it to you.

The kids are as follows:
1) Set the best example you can
2) Talk to your kids about everything having to do with money and make those talks unemotional. Emotional issues around money are adults number one hurtle to having it in their lives.
3) Give your kids plenty of practice BEFORE they move out. You do this by first providing an allowance (but not just any old allowance) which consists of the money you are already spending on them. And second by encouraging them to MAKE their own money by starting businesses.

If you want to know more, feel free to contact us at www.campmillionaire.com

I am passionate about teaching kids about money!

Tessy & Tab a bi-monthly learning to read publication for children offers a Money Management kit on their website. It includes 3 books, "Yard Sale" "Allowance" and ?, posters, wall charts, a Moon Jar bank which is great and more! www.tessyandtab.com or just the bank is www.moonjar.com
good luck!

Hi H.,

I started teaching my son at 4 1/2 about the value of money. He is a little over 5 1/2 now. I bought workbooks from Schoolzone for different grades and I've taught him Fractions, Addition, Subtraction and Mutiplication up to Grade 2 and he's not even in Kindergarten yet. He loves doing the workbooks. He gets an allowance every week for different little chores he does around the house and understand the money that is given to him and knows the value. There really is no right or wrong time to teach your son. If he's willing to have you teach him by all means do it. My thought is is the more they know the more they grow. Good Luck.

C.

we are doing the Dave Ramsey program that he has set up for kids. it really seems to work, both my kids (ages 7 and 4) understand the value of money etc. it's really great! check it out!
good luck!