Teaching kids financial literacy: practical, fun learning

[shootingstar]

Anything to get kids motivated to learn how to budget and deal with money.

http://www.thestar.com/news/article/...ke-finance-fun

I think it's great.

How did you acquire financial literacy in dealing with your own money, assets? From parent(s), books, school (?) or learning the hard way?

[indysteel]

I was generally pretty responsible with money, but I learned most of what I know by working as a bankruptcy attorney. It has encouraged a certain mindset about living below my means. I'm not a miser by any stretch, but I do tend to save well more than I spend. It helps that I'm not really a shopper. I like having a few nice things, but I am not obsessed with having stuff. I wear the same clothes almost every week for instance, and I'm always slow to buy the newest gadget. Thankfully, I married someone with similar attitudes. Our only debt is the house. Travel and bikes are our biggest luxuries.

[Irulan]

Do we really need stage shows with rap to teach finances?

My parents didn't do much except teach me to not answer the phone if they thought the bank was calling. I learned a lot as an adult.

As for kids, every moment can be a lesson. I think one of the first ones at our house was figuring out just how much extra you were paying for that Happy Meal toy.

[Tri Girl]

Do we really need stage shows with rap to teach finances?

Sadly, yes.
I teach personal finance to middle schoolers. As with all the grades that I teach (preK-8th), if you are not wildly entertaining- they tune you out. Sad but true- education/teaching/school is not what it was when I started out 15 years ago. It's a dog and pony show on crack now.


I teach at a Catholic school in an upper-middle class area. Most of our students want for very little in life. In my personal finance class I tell them I shop only at resale/consignment/thrift stores and that I purchase many things that are used. I tell them how we save so we can pay cash for things that we need (new tires, things that break in the house, vacations, etc) and that you don't have to live dependent on credit cards. I have also told them that I used to have big credit card debt and that I've learned from my past mistakes and don't feel I need to have "all that and a bag of chips." I have no problem showing them the other side of things (other than what they are used to). I teach them to save money on groceries, etc. It's also who I am: very eco-friendly. I try to show them that you can live very frugally (not by choice in my case) , and still be VERY fulfilled and happy and have everything you need. I want them to know that they don't have to live a life of excess (which many of their families do) to find happiness and fulfillment in sharing what you have with others. Many of our families are very generous with their time and treasure, too. Someone has to show them there's an "other" side out there in case they are not shown that in their own life.

[Blueberry]

I've had to teach myself.

As I've posted other places, my (long divorced) parents are both in financial trouble now (massive credit card debt and dad is probably a compulsive shopper). This is not the first time for either of them. I'm in my 30's. They've asked/expected me to help them out to differing degrees. Saying no to that has been a hard lesson for me - but I have to look out for my own (and my DH's) financial security now.

[Pax]

We were pretty poor when I was a kid, military pay was abysmal and every move meant lost pay records and a couple of months with no paycheck for my dad. Famous family story about moving across country (pre interstate), once the packed food ran out we would stop to eat and my folks would order two hot dogs, my brother and I ate the dogs and my mom and dad ate the buns.

I learned that to not pay your bills meant you were trash, no matter what - if you incurred a debt you paid it back as promised. When I lived in Chicago as a 20 year old I was so poor I'd have something like 1.83 to last a week after I paid my rent and utilities; my choices were to buy peanut butter OR buy a paper to look for a better job. I ate a LOT of plain bread in those days.

The other thing I learned from my folks was to pay cash for everything I possibly could. So except for a mortgage and an occasional (used) car payment, I don't have any debt these days.

[shootingstar]

Other than the occasional exhortations to us, to save money...probably how I learned initially about dealing with money in a carefull way was the way how my parents saved money in a disciplined way..so that they could buy a house and move from a 1 bedroom apt. that was getting way too crowded for 5 children.

I knew how much my parents paid for their first home. And I was 11 yrs. old. I guess they trusted that I wouldn't blab it to anyone. It was abit rundown house, anyway.

But other than that, I learned from reading books and magazines.

[VeganBikeChick]

I've done it all wrong...and am just now finally wisening up.

My mom was really frugal, my dad was really spendy. We never had financial woes growing up, but unfortunately I took after my dad in that I'm a huge impulse shopper and "have" to have name brands. Somehow it was ingrained in me that I'm less of a person if I shop at Walmart or KMart, vs Macys or Nordstrom. Now, I know that's not true - just a result of absorbing my environment.

I've come to embrace Target and Kohl's, and I love coupons. However, due to being traumatized by spending 5 hours in the Macy's clearance racks with my mom as a kid, I still hate to search, hours upon end, for the "ideal" bargain. I'm trying to make do with less, but it's still really difficult. I love looking through the Title Nine and Athleta catalogs, and unless I avoid them altogether it's a constant battle of checkbook vs willpower.

I'm in the process of saving for a home, but these last few months I've let my spending go wild. Time to pull in the reins again and buck up...

[roo4]

My parents gave me an allowance, with the stipulation that I had to save 10% and give 10% away to the charity of my choice.

In graduate school, I was thrifty by necessity. After I got my first job, I bought a couple of books about personal finance and studied them. The basic takehome message was save save save and don't buy a bunch of **** that you don't need and can't afford. Except bikes, of course. And bike-related products.

[Crankin]

My parents were quite wealthy when I was young. However, they never seemed to spend or do some of the things other parents did, like travel extensively. Our house was in a nice area, but nothing unusual. Then the business my dad was in went overseas and things were never the same. However, I didn't suffer, my grandparents helped and I got loans for college.
I always lived paycheck to paycheck before I got married. I bought lots of clothes, pretty much... paid all my bills on time, but saving was never a thought in my head. I guess my parents never saved, either, as they never were able to regain the same standard of living, except for a few years in the eighties.
DH and I made some choices that were purposeful, and had us in debt for quite a few years, but we were committed to raising our kids with certain things, in the way we were both raised. Our incomes were going up, and eventually it was fine, as our kids got into their teen years. By the time the oldest left for college, we were debt free and because he chose to transfer to a state school after his first year, we had no debt from that, either. The only debt we have is our house.

[shootingstar]

My parents would have long, thoughtful discussions among themselves about buying an appliance, a car, house mortgage, etc. I am accustomed to a marriage/relationship that explores options, weighs pros and cons etc. Neither parent blew money apart thoughtlessly and good thing since we were very poor. But also they didn't indulge in smoking, drinking, etc.

My mother though she only has up to gr. 10 level education, is more naturally mathematically inclined. She would do certain calculations in her head while my father sat there and listened to her.

If my father was around with her when my mother was grocery shopping he'll help her look for discounted deals in the store.

Because we were so poor, we were never given allowance at all. So we had to ask for stuff and we each knew we had to have a good reasons to have certain things.
We were each given money and instructed what to buy at the grocery store on our own, 1-3 items. In high school we were only allowed to work 7-10 hrs. per wk. in last 1-2 years of high school. They wanted us to focus on our studies. We were expected to save money for university, etc. which was supplemented by student grants (during my time. Such stuff isn't available much any more.)

So a rap lesson on finance and budgeting, at that age for me, I would have been entertained may be learned something. But more entertained...