Three Tips for Teaching Kids About Money

Published: February 15, 2019

Responsible spending habits begin at a young age—and it's never too early to start teaching your child about the value of a hard-earned dollar. If you're looking for some creative, yet effective ways to teach your young child about money, we have some suggestions!

Set Up a Savings Account

Start by setting up a savings account for your child, if you haven't done so already. You can start them off by contributing a small amount of money at the beginning, and then encourage them to deposit small amounts from their allowance, birthday money, or money earned from chores. Take time to review the savings account statement with your child regularly, showing them how interest has accrued on the money they've saved. This should encourage them to continue saving!

Play Some Board Games

Have fun while teaching your child about money with the right board games. There are all kinds of great, kid-friendly board games that can be educational in terms of finances. Monopoly is one of the first that comes to mind, or even "Junior Monopoly" specifically designed for those younger entrepreneurs. Another great game for teaching children more about finance is the Game of Life. Carve out time to play these types of games with your children at least once a week.

Offer a Small Allowance

If you aren't doing so already, now can be a great time to start offering your child a small allowance in exchange for chores done around the house and/or good behavior. Once your child realizes the work that goes into earning money, he or she may be more hesitant to spend it and more inclined to save it. If your child asks you to buy something for him or her, insist that your child use his or her allowance money to pay for it. Often times, they will realize that they don't need that new toy so badly when they have to use their own money to purchase it.

As you can see, there are plenty of ways to teach your child about money. If you need assistance, Santa Clara County Federal Credit Union is here to help by providing youth education programs. Give some (or all) of these a try in your household to get your child off on the right foot in life.