Insights from Experts on Teaching Your Children About Money
Jan 25, 2022
Written By Carolyn Sloan
As featured on MoneyGeek. Click below to read the full article.
Why should children learn about finance and compound interest?
Whether we like it or not, our lives are centrally directed by money daily. How much we earn, how much we have and how much we can spend are perennially stubborn topics to which we must pay attention. We must heed the financial constraints we have or our financial responsibilities to be responsible citizens who function in a society governed by certain financial mainstays. This is a way of saying that children should learn to understand the monetary value of things, that work that goes into earning money and the rewards of saving money or spending too much money and owing money because, for lack of a better phrase, "money makes the world go around." Compound interest could be of particular interest to a younger person because once understood, I would imagine that a child would be eager to save money to make their money grow over time, so they can have more money to buy the things they desire. Giving kids lessons in patience and discipline is important too. To routinely save money week after week, without having the immediate gratification of a purchase, is a wonderful life lesson that can set a child up for financial success as an adult. Children who grow up not understanding the value of hard work, discipline and paying for things themselves usually suffer from entitlement and a weak work ethic and end up with financial problems, such as credit card debt and defaulting on loans. A simple lesson of walking through a supermarket and comparing prices and the quality of goods can be a terrific start to thinking about money and all that it means for a successful and happy life.
