Starting a new school year may bring about the opportunity for many new “firsts” in a child’s life. Young children are always eager to play games and have fun learning in the process. As your child prepares for school, it may be time to begin teaching them how to manage money. It will start off with them being able to properly budget their lunch money but this life skill will be needed well into adulthood.
What is the best way to start as you teach your children about money? The best place to start is to establish home routines that will help them enjoy learning the value of money. These routines will help them learn how the monetary system works and how effective management of their money will be beneficial to them.
Effective Money Management Tips for Young Children
Teaching Them about Financial Literacy
The best way to explain this concept to your children is to make them become aware of the difference between “wants” and “needs”. Teach children that it is crucial to prioritize needs over wants, no matter what the situation is. The moment your children understand this small fact, the sooner they will start being financially literate.
Another great way to teach them about responsibility and proper money management is to assign them household chores to do. Here are a few chores that preschool-aged children will be able to handle.
Household Chores Your Children Should Try
1 - Make the Bed
Children should learn how to make and fix their own bed after they get up in the morning. When they get out of bed, it should become second nature to them to fix the covers and arrange their pillows.
2 - Get Ready for School
They should also be in charge of getting themselves ready for school. They should be able to come down for breakfast, go up to shower or freshen up, brush their teeth, and make sure that they have everything they need before stepping out of the door to go to school.
3 - Make Their Own Lunch
If your children are learning remotely this year, you can pre-prepare the ingredients for a sandwich they can make for themselves when lunchtime rolls in.
4 - Helping with Meal Preparation
Older children may also benefit from helping you with meal preparation. Have them get eggs or vegetables from the fridge for you as you need them. Teach them that there is power in teamwork and their efforts make a difference.
5 - Clean Up
Teaching children to clean up after themselves. If they play with their toys or gadgets, they should be responsible for putting them away.
Conclusion
When it comes to teaching your child about financial literacy and the proper handling of money, it all starts with teaching them about responsibility. No matter how much money they have, if they do not know how to properly manage it, they will not be able to put any funds away for savings. Making them do chores and having them follow a routine will help instill a sense of responsibility in your children that will extend way past their childhood years and will help them grow into responsible and financially literate adults.
The icing on the cake to teaching children about financial literacy is to show them that hard work will be rewarded. Downloading a chore tracker app like Kiddie Kredit will help you teach your child the value of money. Get the app today!
