How financially savvy and responsible are your children? How good is their Money IQ?
Do they understand ATM machines and credit cards don’t actually offer an unlimited supply of money?
Are the words debt, budget, interest, income, and savings like a foreign language to them?
Sadly, according to one article they probably don’t. Researchers found that “73% of American consumers die in debt.” Most of that is credit card debt. People today are controlled by the requirement to pay off debt.
As parents, we have the chance to ensure that our children know how to responsibly control their money instead of living their lives in debt being controlled by money.
We need to be intentional about teaching children financial responsibility. As Christine M. Field says in her book Life Skills for Kids, “Children need to be given the opportunity to make financial decisions as early as possible. It is better to let them learn, experiment, and make mistakes with small sums than to wait…”
I have been blessed to be able to stay home and homeschool my daughters, but I am only able to do that because my husband and I have made it a priority to manage money responsibly. It has made such a difference in our lives we decided it is important to instill financial lessons in our own daughters.
I am definitely still learning on this parenting journey (my daughters are 11 and 10); however, there are a few crucial financial tips that I have discovered over the years.