Are You Teaching Your Children How To Handle Money?
Have you always taken pride in the fact that you are not in debt and that you have a great credit rating? Or, you might have learned good money management skills the hard way. Perhaps as a young person you didn't really understand how to handle money and you got yourself into some problems. Maybe it was in solving those money problems that you have developed a great respect for the say money is spent. No matter the scenario, if you have decided to teach your children how to handle money, you are giving them a gift that will last a lifetime. From showing them how to spend their money to helping them open their own savings accounts, here are some ideas that might help you.
Teach Them How To Spend Their Money - Do your children get an allowance? Perhaps they earn their spending money. Either way, help them to learn the difference from wants and needs. Of course, it's fun to purchase things like toys. However, even the selection of toys can be a teaching tool. For example, your little son might want to buy a brand new skate board. Great. That would be something he or she would enjoy for a long time, right? However, perhaps your child could buy a used skate board at a pawn shop or at a thrift store. He or she would still end up with a skate board, but it would more than likely cost a lot less than a brand new one.
Open A Savings Account Together - Besides teaching your children about how to spend their money, teach them how to save it, too. For example, you might establish a family tradition that ten per cent of your money goes to tithing at your church or to a charity organization. In addition, a certain percentage of your child's money could go into his or her own savings account. Think of taking each child to the bank separately. Call the bank ahead of time and explain to the bank's representative that you will be bringing your child in to learn about a savings account.
The clerk at the bank will show your child how to make a notation of every transaction that your child makes. He or she will be given a personal accounting booklet. At first, you might want to help your child with those notations. Consider meeting with each of your children at least once a month to talk about goals they have on how they want to spend their money. Remind them that, by putting money into their savings accounts, their goals will be met.