Welcome to The Money Quest Day 2
I hope you enjoyed the story and activities yesterday. Below you will find the links for today’s fun and games!
Please add your comments and questions below or via our Facebook page
Day 2
August 5th, 2019 Posted in financial literacy for kids, free financial education resources, teaching children about money
Why Talk About Money With Your Children?
April 29th, 2019 Posted in financial literacy for kids, kids and money, Parent Advice, teaching children about money
Why is it important to talk about money with our children? As a society, we’ve come to understand that staying silent on the topics of sex and drugs can often lead to negative or unwanted consequences. The same is true for money.
Starting the money conversation early, and having it often, in an age-appropriate way helps prepare our children for managing their own money wisely.
Stay silent about it and you risk leaving your children open to the pitches of TV adverts and peer pressure. Much better for you to take conscious control over what they are learning rather than the bombardment of advertising or negative portrayal in films and the media.
Theresa Harezlak, a financial adviser with Savant Capital Management and a mother of two, says the biggest money mistake that parents make is silence.
“Every time my kids go outside I tell them to be careful crossing the roads and do not talk to strangers, but we never talk about money. In reality”, she says, “the chances of her kids being abducted are very low, but the chances of her children using money are certain”.
Theresa Harezlak
Staying silent about money and you risk leaving your children open to the pitches of TV, adverts and peer pressure. Much better for you to take conscious control over what they are learning rather than the bombardment of advertising or negative portrayal in films and the media.
For example think of how many films or TV shows have the arch villain as some kind of reclusive billionaire. In fact how many positive examples of rich people can you call to mind?
In my view, too many parents don’t talk about money with their kids at all. Others skirt topics they don’t know much about, like investing and debt. Parents are the main source of money information for children, but 74% of parents are reluctant to discuss family finances with their kids, according to the 2014 T. Rowe Price Parents, Kids, and Money Survey. That’s a big shame, because ignorance about money can set up your kids to make bad decisions — and eventually pass those bad habits on to your grandchildren.
The solution: Make financial literacy a family value
In her book, Do I Look Like an ATM?: A Parent’s Guide to Raising Financially Responsible African American Children, Sabrina Lamb details “the business of your family household.” Lamb, says all families should work together on five financial topics: learning, earning, saving, investing, and donating time or funds to causes you value. She recommends a daily diet of business news, occasional meetings between the kids, your bank, or other financial advisors, and support of your older kids’ entrepreneurial goals. This might be a bit idealistic for many but using the news or an online article as a stimulus for a conversation about money could be a good start.
Even if money is tight, don’t
stress about it in silence.
When parents are worried about money but are not communicating their financial situation, children pick up on the anxiety and associate it broadly with finances. Rather than learning money lessons from their parent’s mistakes or particular situation, children instead learn that money is ‘stressful’ and ‘bad’.
A 2013 Study by Cambridge University for the Money Advice Service revealed that our money values and habits are formed in childhood often before the age of 7. If a child is growing up with the programming that money is stressful and bad what are the chances that they will ever make any as an adult?
This is why the primary goal behind The Financial Fairy Tales books is to help spread positive, empowering messages about money to children and counteract the negative bias they may be exposed to elsewhere.
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The Last Gold Coin
April 24th, 2019 Posted in financial literacy for kids, free financial education resources, the financial fairy tales
** Special Offer **
The award winning Last Gold Coin is being promoted on Amazon. For a very limited time you can get the Kindle version for FREE.
Here are the links
What’s the Book About?
The Last Gold Coin tells the story of a young prince who returns from an adventure to find his Kingdom in ruins. All seems lost as a wicked witch plots against him and steals all the gold from the castle vault – all except one last gold coin.The arrival of a beautiful stranger brings a change in fortune, but are the people ready to change their ways? And who is brave enough to tackle the wicked witch?
The Financial Fairy Tales are a series of inspirational children’s books designed to help teach kids positive money values and skills.
The Last Gold Coin contains important money messages of saving, investment and how money can grow. Plus positive values and ideas such as generosity and self reliance.
Suitable for children typically from 6-10 or younger if you would like to read it with them.
Why FREE?
Firstly I believe it’s a great book, with lots of positive and inspiring morals and ideas, so I as the author I would like to get it into the hands of as many readers as possible.
Secondly, the Amazon machine feeds on reviews, so if you like the book and can leave a review, that will help increase its visibility and likelihood of more people finding it.
Here are those links again
If you are reading this from a different country then please search for The Last Gold Coin within Amazon in your region.
Thank you so much, I sincerely hope you and your children will enjoy the book.
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The older we get, the more we realize how crucial financial skills are to surviving and navigating life. Too bad though, schools don’t seem to teach our children enough about money and how to manage it.
As a parent, teaching your kids critical financial lessons is a great way to prepare them for the life that’s ahead of them.
But where to begin, you ask?
These key money management lessons we have compiled should be an excellent place to start.
1. Money Does Not Grow On Trees
Financial literacy starts with the understanding that money is a finite resource. Your kids have to realize early on that money does not grow on trees or simply pop out of the ATM; it is a product of hard work, and banks are just establishments that keep them safe for you.
To get your point across, teach your kids how to earn their own money by paying them for doing extra chores around the house. When they’re older, encourage them to get part-time jobs. Not only will this give them a taste of how the real world operates, but it will also help them develop a better work ethic.
2. Wants vs. Needs
Sound financial decisions begin with distinguishing needs from wants. You don’t have to wait for your kids to get older to teach them what’s necessary and what isn’t.
Make your children understand that some expenses have to come first, while others can wait ‘til later or when you have extra money as they’re not essential to day to day living.
3. Delayed Gratification
They say good things come to those who wait. Delaying gratification, however, is something that even adults have a hard time coming to terms with.
Teach kids at an early age that they can’t have everything they want in an instant. Learning to save and prioritize before buying something can have a significant impact on how they handle their finances when they become adults. As parents, you have to reinforce the idea that waiting pays off especially if the goal is worth the wait.
4. Saving For The Rainy Days
Your kids are never too young to start saving. Encourage them to save not because they want to buy something but because the money might come in handy in the future. Instill in them the importance of pausing and weighing the costs before spending. This may be a difficult concept to grasp at first, but later on, it can develop into a habit that they can very much benefit from.
5. Spending Money Wisely
Train your children how to get the most value out of every dollar. Just because they can afford it does not mean they have to buy it. Teach them how to compare prices; explain to them the concept of holiday sales and discount coupons. Help them understand that, sometimes, it wiser to wait it out, especially when buying items that easily depreciate.
6. Living Within Their Means
Of course, you can’t effectively teach your kids the value of money without letting them manage their expenses. Giving them an allowance and making them budget it on their own will help them see how important it is to control their spending. In fact, blowing their allowance can be a good thing; it will teach them to be more conscious of their expenses, else they have to deal with the consequences.
7. How Credit Works
If you want your children to grow up to be financially responsible adults, you have to give them a better understanding of credit and what it entails. They have to be aware of the dangers of debt and how borrowing money can come at a cost. While credit is not bad, one must be sure of his ability to pay or risk getting into trouble.
8. The Value of Investing
Teaching your children the value of investing will not only introduce to them to the idea of using money to make more money but also trigger them to make smarter financial decisions. More importantly, it will encourage them to take risks for the possibility of gaining much more.
9. Setting Financial Goals
Children are impulsive by nature, so it can be tricky for them to set priorities. However, just like adults, they can be capable of making sacrifices for something that they really want. Train your kids to set financial goals by pushing them to make plans for the money they earn or receive. Help them set realistic targets and encourage them to keep on saving until those targets are met.
10. Sharing and Giving Back
Giving is an essential aspect of financial management. Whether it’s for the church, the community, or family members, children, as young as they are, have to be acquainted with the value of sharing what they have to those who need it.
They say you can’t give what you don’t have. Well, in this particular case, you can’t teach what you don’t know. If you want to raise financially literate children who know how to value money, you have to learn as much as you can about it first and then set a good example. Nowadays, adults can’t just pull the old “do as I say” parenting style. Kids tend to follow what you do, not what you say.
About The Author Bio
Samantha Green is the Content Marketing Strategist for BusyKid, the first and only chore and allowance platform where kids can earn, save, share, spend, and invest their allowance. A mom of two, she enjoys spending time with her kids and reading books to them.
Eighty percent of parents in the UK agree that early financial education translates to better money management in adulthood but feel that they are ill-equipped to teach their children themselves. Children are increasingly exposed to household finance complexities in an era where four out of 10 adults in England and Northern Ireland struggle with basic arithmetic and only 36% of those ages 18 to 34 understand common financial terms. Aside from the fact that many parents are struggling with finances themselves, finance counselor and researcher Martha Henn McCormick notes that the relationship between early financial education and financial savvy in adulthood has not been thoroughly studied.
Photo by Robyn Budlender on Unsplash
The gap in knowledge is a serious concern, according to the English Department of Education, and the All Party Parliamentary Group on Financial Education for Young People (APPG) agrees. An APPG report in 2016 states that the financial literacy crisis is reflected in the UK’s adult population and that there is a need for schools to teach financial skills to reverse this trend. The people over at gkandpartners.com can provide some help in this regard, but curricula do need to be changed to include more financial learning. Research done by finance firm M&G encourages financial education at home as well and suggests parents should be the first to teach their children about money.
Financial Literacy Crisis
With children aged 11 to 17 now exposed to financial issues that they cannot understand or solve, the Department of Education is worried that the financial literacy crisis in the country will get worse. Representatives of the department feel that parents need to be more proactive in their children’s education and that financial education must start as early as age two. While it is still not compulsory for students to take up coursework on finance, it is not enough. The APPG reports that the debt to income ratio of 17 to 24 year olds in the UK is now at 70%, indicating a lack of financial education among the youth.
The Power of Bedtime Stories
Children love stories and parents should take advantage of this by including financial fairy tales during story time. The right stories can teach children about the basics of commerce, the value of money, and the importance of savings and investments. This is a good start for ages 2 to 11 because it is a fun approach to teaching financial knowledge that will come in handy in adulthood. Bedtime stories can also teach children how to grow their wealth and keep their expenses lower than their pocket money. There are a number of financial fairy tales that tackle money wasters, budgeting, and fundamental investment concepts that can give them insight on how to handle the money they have.
The Magic Magpie, a financial fairy tale about a girl who wants to get rich quick offers lessons on financial decisions and their consequences. The Toll Bridge is another good bedtime story for parents struggling to teach their children about money. The book teaches children about taxes, supply and demand, and trade and public spending. The Last Gold Coin is also a good option because it tackles issues on scarcity and what people can do to save the day. You can find out more about the Financial Fairy Tales books here
Knowledge is Power
A child’s brain is like a sponge, according to the International Journal of Science. This means that he or she will be able to master the fundamentals of money management if it is taught early on. Teaching your child about finances through financial fairy tales would later translate to financial literacy in adulthood and can save your child from the burden of financial troubles.
