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It Does Not Just Grow On Trees

by Michelle

While my memory is vague, I seem to recall getting an allowance as a kid, ranging anywhere from $3 - $10 dollars a week, hopefully increasing as I got older. I do not remember this allowance having any correlation to chores, or that it connected to lessons on spending, budgeting or saving. What this probably means is that I was spoiled and am now financially doomed. In a quick office poll on this subject, only one person talked about how her parents offered her financial options regarding different ways to smartly manage her $5 a week. (Her mother is an accountant.) Another person described getting a "mall" allowance. (She's from Southern California.)

But really, how do we impart basic financial knowledge to kids, both younger and older?

A few kasina team members have been teaching with Cents Ability, an organization that provides high school students with basic finance classes so they may work towards achieving their goals through informed money management. Topics covered range from goal setting, to creating a budget, how to pick a credit card, and introductions on the stock market and investing. It is a worthy and no doubt challenging endeavor. Math classes, and less frequently, accounting classes are the only way in which students might gain exposure to finance issues, but this is neither as direct nor explicit as what a class specifically on money management would offer. Cents Ability attempts to bridge that learning gap. A related and helpful Web resource for this question is Education.com. The site offers parents and educators a wide spectrum of information, including articles on:

• How to teach money management
• Understanding the cost of living
• Tips to foster financial literacy in kids

These links provide useful tips on how to help kids understand how we save to spend, compartmentalize and manage our money. As the adage goes, it doesn't just grow on trees.