Education for Children

Are you looking to teach your child about money management? The earlier you start this process, the easier it will be for your child to develop financial habits that will benefit him or her for a lifetime, and prevent them from moving home after college in serious debt. Statistically speaking, they may still come back to the nest, but debt free would be nice. Yet sadly, too many parents avoid talking finance for children as they think it is too advanced. Maybe as parents our finances are not the way they should be, too much debt, late bills, and collections so we chose not to talk money with our children? Don’t fall into this category, regardless of your circumstances. Your child can learn to budget wisely starting at the age of three, yes, starting at the age of three, and odds are as parents we’ll learn something along the way. By the time he or she is ready to head out on their own, these habits will be so deeply ingrained they won’t experience the financial difficulties many of us have had to, and better yet, if they fly back to the nest, they can treat us to dinner! Here are six steps you should follow when setting up an allowance that can teach finance for children in a fun way.

1. Start by determining how much money your child should be receiving and the frequency of payment. If they are old enough, let them be a part of the negotiation. Get creative, many parents will chose chores as the foundation for payment. This is a great opportunity to instill the entrepreneurial spirit in your children. Not just chores, maybe you would like the artwork on the fridge updated monthly, or fresh flowers on the table every few weeks. Give them opportunities to explore their passions, it’s a delicate balancing act, putting a value on what the enjoy, but this will encourage them to investigate ways to create income beyond a J.O.B. Which for many of us means “Just Over Broke”.

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