“Where do you start teaching your kids about money? How do you tell a kindergartener that money is a finite resource without making them worry? How do you pass on the value of the dollar and the importance of saving without raising them to be materialistic or cheap? They key is starting the conversation early, keeping it age appropriate and ongoing, and showing your kids how you use your values to shape your spending.” This article contains an age-by-age guide.
“From the time your kid has their first toy related meltdown in a store to your first utterance of ‘money doesn’t grow on trees,’ you’re building the foundation of your child’s relationship with money. For young kids, it can be a hard-to-understand concept. Money might not grow on trees, but they often see it ejected from ATMs and substituted for the simple swipe of a credit card. Considering the increasingly abstract ways in which money is earned and spent, and the diminishing safety nets that younger generations won’t necessarily be able to lean on, financial experts, child psychologists and even the American Psychological Association agree that kids need to develop their financial literacy skills sooner rather than later.”
- Ages 3 to 4: Introduce the Concept of Money and Exchanging It for Goods
- Ages 5 to 6: Teach the Value of Money and Cost of Goods
- Ages 7 to 8: Teach Them About Wants Versus Needs, and Smart Shopping
- Ages 9 to 10: Introduce Saving, Spending, and Delayed Gratification
- Ages 11 to 12: Teach Them About Being a Smart Consumer, Deceptive Advertising, and the Fine Art of Budgeting
- Ages 13 to 14: Give Them Their First Taste of Financial Independence
- Ages 15 to 16: Teach Them How to Build Credit and the Truth About Credit Cards
- Ages 17 to 18: Use College as an Example of Real-World Financial Decisions
Financial Therapy focuses on the emotions, behaviors, and beliefs around financial issues and helps you achieve a more healthy, realistic and empowered relationship with money. Financial Therapy is insight-oriented and addresses the process of one’s relationship to money on a deep level. It can also help you identify tactical improvement strategies and brainstorm implementable changes. Contact Elaine Korngold to learn more.