Kirsten Reynolds-Wood, Brand and Marketing Executive at GetBucks, offers some valuable tips to help parents teach their kids the value of money.
Teach the idea of ‘value’. Have fun doing it!
Helping young children understand that certain things require money to have and that they hold value, is a vital step in the financial rearing process. Use games to help them learn. Be creative and have some fun. Give them a money purse with a few coins and let them take it along to the shops. If they would like to buy something, count their coins with them and tell them whether they have enough to get what they want – they will learn that some things require more coins than others.
Teach the idea of ‘want’ versus ‘need’. Help them choose.
Speak honestly about money. Have conversations about their choices and help them choose things that are wiser to own. Stress that their pocket money is for things that they want, and that you, Mom or Dad, will buy them what they need.
Teach the idea of ‘saving’. There is no better lesson to learn.
Teaching kids to save for a better or more expensive item is one of the most important financial lessons you can teach them. A child who willingly rejects the choice of instant gratification for a better item they can buy after saving for a while, is a child well on their way to becoming a fully-functional financial adult.
Always try to do your best to empower your kids to be financially smart – it is the best life-long gift you can give your child.
Source: MyBucks.