When it comes to money, most experts would say, “Start them young.” And as a frugal mom, I agree.
So, in this post, I’m sharing some enjoyable ways you can teach your kids about money.
Teach them about needs vs wants
Having money to spend is exciting for a kid. But it’s crucial for us to teach them the difference between a need and a want for them to make wise financial choices someday.
How?
You can show them a shopping site and let them identify which products are really needed for survival (food, shelter, clothing) in contrast to those that they like “just ‘coz” (just because they’re cute and adorable).
Go second-hand shopping
Another way to teach kids to save money buy from thrift stores.
You could turn it into a fun game.
You could be bargain hunters looking for high-quality branded items at half the price! You could add some criteria so your kids know what to look for.
This could also be a good opportunity to teach kids about helping the environment. You see, buying and using preloved items means we don’t have to use a lot of our natural resources to make new ones. Did you know it takes 1,800 gallons of water to make just one pair of jeans?
Let them play money games online
Speaking of games, you can also teach them about finances through online money games. It’s a fun way for them to learn about counting money and giving back change. Other games also include practicing mathematical operations (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division)
Interestingly, one of the sites I discovered recently called Mortgage Calculator has a wide array of money games. I actually tried out a few of them with my daughter.
The first one we tried is called Cashier Simulator. It’s fun because I get to play the cashier. You know, I’ve always wondered how they do it.
So I had to input the amount of each item and give the customers their change. It was so much fun though I did make some mistakes.
As I was playing, my daughter got curious and asked if she can play a money game too.
First, she checked out Supermarket Numbers. This one’s like a brick game except you need to clear it out by adding numbers to hit the goal. Quite challenging too since it has a timer.
After this game, she also wanted to be a cashier like Mommy. So I told her to try Grocery Cashier. We had fun together on this one.
I like that this is more visual compared to the Cashier Simulator since you can see each item they’ll buy. It’s an engrossing way for them to learn about payments and change.
As you know, are probably a dozen more ways to teach our little ones about the value of money. What’s important is that we’re creative and consistent so that they grow up to be financially responsible adults.
How about you? How do you teach your kids about money?
