Moola Days |
Posted: 11 Mar 2011 10:03 PM PST  Getting your kids to save money can seem like a challenging proposition. Let’s face it: kids are being brought up in a very materialistic, “keeping up with the Joneses” type of society. They see all kinds of cool toys and gadgets on TV, and they think they have to have them too. The unfortunate fact is that most kids are not being taught how to save that all. For this reason, it’s going to be completely up to the parents to teach their kids how to save for the future and why it’s so important. Here are 10 quick tips for teaching your kids how to save money.1. Show them the bills: It’s very important for parents to be realistic with their kids. This means sitting down with them when they’re at a reasonable age and showing them how bills work. If you have to write it down on a dry erase board and explain to them income and outgoing bills. 2. Splitting up their cash: When a child receives money for their birthday or by way of allowance, get them into the habit of taking a certain portion of that to save. Explain to them that the money is off limits and will be put into a savings account or piggy bank. 3. Set up an account: When a child hits the age of about six or seven, it’s important for the parents to take them down to the bank and have them set up a savings account. This is something that they can be proud of. Make a game so that they’re very excited about filling out their deposit slips to put money into the bank on a regular basis. 4. Get a digital savings bank: They’re all kinds of digital savings bank’s available that will count the child’s money and keep track of how much they are saving. Different than your traditional piggy bank, this will be something that a child can regularly look at and see how much money they are accumulating. 5. Help them set goals: If a child wants to purchase something on the expensive side, help them set a goal of how much money they need to earn in order to buy the item. Maybe they can cut out a picture or even draw one that they can hang on the wall to remind them of what they’re working towards. 6. Matching: Some parents opt to match their child’s savings as a way of keeping them motivated. Similar to how an employer will match a 401(k) contribution, offer to match a child’s savings dollars for dollar. This is a great way to work with a teenager who wants to buy a car! 7. Modeling: By far, the best way to show your child how important saving money is would be to model it in your own behavior. If a child grows up in a home where money is never discussed or the idea of savings is never brought up, they will have no idea how to handle their own financial affairs. 8. Talk about how to spend money: When your child wants to spend their money on something, have an open and honest talk with them about whether or not the item is really worth the money. For instance, if a child gets $50 from their grandparents for Christmas and wants to immediately spend it, work with them on deciding whether or not the item they want to purchase is worth the investment. 9. Talk about the future: As a child gets older, it might be worth it to sit down with them and show them how money grows using compound interest. Kids are often amazed to see how much money grows over time if you just leave it alone! 9 Quick Tips for Teaching Your Kids to Save Money is a post from: Moola Days |
| You are subscribed to email updates from Moola Days To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
