Finances are a huge part of our lives; after all, money really is what makes the world go round. It costs money to eat, to live and to do practically anything. But oddly enough, schools don't teach our children a whole lot when it comes to finances and especially how to be financially responsible. With April being Financial Literacy month, I thought?that now would be the perfect time to discuss this topic. I've partnered with BusyKid to talk about the lack of financial education in schools. Though I was compensated, all opinions are my own.
Financial education is minimal in schools and kids get on average of one semester of financial education, if any at all. In fact, 1/3 of kids haven't been taught how to get or earn money, according to a survey conducted by the Junior Achievement-Jackson Children's Financial Literacy Survey. This study also found that 41% of children were never taught how to spend money and a whopping 47% had never learned about using money to help others. No wonder this world is full of people with such an entitled mentality!
How to Get Past the Lack of Financial Education in Schools
Since?children don't learn much about money and finances in school, it's our job as parents to ensure that our children learn about money. We need to teach the them value of a dollar, what it takes to make a dollar, how to save money and how to be a responsible spender.
Teach the value of a dollar and what it takes to earn one
Kids will never learn the value of a dollar if they never have to do anything to earn one. I am a firm believer in children doing chores to help out around the house. In exchange for their help, they can earn money or "points"?towards things that they want. This will help to teach them that money isn't just a paper (or plastic) object. They will see what it takes to earn money and BusyKid is a great tool to use for this purpose.
BusyKid is a very simple tool to use in teaching your kids about money and how to earn it. You simply set up an account, input your child's name and birth date and a list of chores will be suggested for them, based on their age. You can also add your own chores. You can then select the frequency of the chore and how much the child will earn for completing each chore. The kids do the work, earn the money and parents approve. It's really very simple to use!
I'm not the only one who thinks that chores are an essential part of raising a child. Here are some results from a survey on chores and allowance:
- 89% of parents say tying allowance to chores is good training for the real world
- 88% of parents say chores make kids more responsible
- 92% of parents say their kids are more disciplined when doing chores
I couldn't agree with these statements more and find each of these to be true within my own children. Teaching children how to save money and be a responsible spender is equally as important and teaching them about the value of money and how to earn it. I will touch more on that subject next time.