Teach your kids how to be good with money
Handling money well is worth its weight in gold. Schools generally teach children little about money, so it often becomes the parents' responsibility. In this blog we list a few smart tips for both educators and children.
We believe that the earlier a child learns to understand the value of money, the better it is for that child's financial future. Handling money well is worth its weight in gold, which is why this year's theme for Money Week is ‘Money Matters’. Schools generally teach children little about money, so it quickly becomes the parents' responsibility. That is why we have listed a few smart tips for educators and children in this blog.
Starting small is better than not starting at all
Most schools do not usually teach lessons about money, budgeting or finances. At most, a sum involving pocket money will come up during maths. So it is usually the noble task of parents to teach their children how to handle money. And that is important! Being able to handle money well is extremely useful throughout your entire life. It appears that the earlier you teach children about money, the greater the chance that they will have their finances in order later in life.
The most important lessons about money are less complicated than you think – you don't have to teach your children how to trade in stocks, for example. What can you teach them? Use everyday life and teach them how money plays a role in it. If you keep it small and close to yourself, the threshold is low and your children will easily pick up the basics. Below, we share three tips from experts that can help you teach your children about money.
1. Make it fun!
Children are unlikely to be keen on listening to a lecture on money matters for an hour or reading a book about saving. Fortunately, there are many other ways to teach children about money. Learning is quickest and works best when it is fun. So, make it fun for them!
Teach children about money via TikTok, for example. TikTok has many users among young teenagers. The percentage of users is highest among 12-year-olds. Within that age group, no less than 64 percent use the app (info multiscope study). A while ago, the hashtag #LearnOnTikTok was created as an initiative to make educational content more accessible.
2. Turn it into a game
We all know that children love games. And the great thing is that they can learn a lot while playing. So get children excited about money by turning the money lessons you want to teach them into a little challenge, a competition or a game.
You don't necessarily have to reinvent the wheel; some existing games can also teach children a lot about money, saving and exchanging. Think, for example, of Settlers of Catan, where you have to collect and exchange raw materials and use them to buy the things you need to win. Or the classic Monopoly. Negotiate, haggle and pay fines with real Monopoly money.
3. Make it real
Finally, we would like to give you the tip to involve children in real money matters. Money plays a role in many things in daily life, such as going grocery shopping. Send your children to the supermarket with a list and some cash. Then the challenge is for them to see if they can buy everything on the list. If they are allowed to keep the change, they will learn one of the basic principles of finance: to be financially healthy, you need more money than you spend.
And of course: give your children pocket money. The earlier you start doing this, the more natural saving and dealing with money will become to them. There is no better way to learn about finances than by experiencing for yourself what you can do with money.
Doris