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5 Ways To Teach Children About Money

One of the most important things you can teach your children is how to handle money. Not just how to count change, but to actually educate, empower, and motivate your children to save and invest money. A big part of learning about money is making financial decisions. Here are 5 ways to teach children about money:

Begin teaching your child about money as soon as he or she can count. Children learn by observation and repetition. Talk about the values of coins and dollars and tell them to watch you pay for items.
Keep communication lines open in regards to money. Continuously talk to your children about how important it is to save money, how to make money grow with investments, how to save money, and how to spend money wisely.
Work with your children to set financial goals. Financial goal setting is fundamental to learning the value of money. Every time your child asks you to buy a toy, make that the object of a goal-setting session. Teach your child to save up his or her own money to purchase that item.
For parents that give their children an allowance, provide the money in small denominations to encourage savings. For example, if you give your child $5 a week for completing household chores, pay them with five, one-dollar bills. Then, encourage the child to save at least one dollar a week.

Everyday spending decisions can have more of a negative impact on a child’s future than any other decision they make. Teaching them to make good spending decisions will greatly benefit your children’s future.

Filed Under: Financing Education, Parenting Tagged With: Child, Money, Saving

Dealing with Teen Rebellion

As children get older, it often becomes more difficult to discipline them. That makes teenage rebellion a particularly problematic phase that can tear families apart. If you use a sensible approach to discipline, though, you might find that you can get through to your child without causing great turmoil in your home.

Image by Jefferson Martina via Flickr

Set Boundaries

It’s part of a teenager’s job to test boundaries, and it’s your job to make sure your teen knows when she has crossed them. Set specific boundaries that are easy to identify. Don’t tell your teenager to “be home at a reasonable time.” You’re just begging for an argument. Instead, tell her to “be home by ten” or a time that feels comfortable to you.

Enforce Rules Consistently

By creating very specific boundaries, you will make it easier for you to enforce rules consistently. It isn’t easy to enforce every rule consistently. Some days you just might not have the energy to enforce a rule. Regardless of how you feel, it is your job to make sure that your teen knows she has crossed a line and that there are repercussions for doing so.

Choose Fair Punishments

The punishment should match the crime. If you hand out steep punishments for small infractions, then your child will stop listening to you. After all, she probably already thinks that you’re “crazy” in some way. Getting bent out of shape over a small rule will justify that position in her mind and encourage her to shut you out completely. Besides, if she gets heavy punishments for small infractions, then she might figure that it makes sense to push things to the limit by doing anything she pleases.

Filed Under: Child Development, General, Parenting Tagged With: Adolescence, Child, Family

Choosing a School for Your Children

Eventually the day will arrive when you have to start making serious educational choices for your kids. You want them to attend a school that works well for them. Knowing how to choose the best school, however, isn’t always obvious. These tips should help you make a good choice.

Choose a Safe School

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Safety is always important. Many parents will even avoid highly rated programs because they are located in unsafe schools. Read the newspaper, talk to students attending the school, and talk to teachers to discover which schools in your area have earned bad reputations for fighting.

Choose a School That Meets Your Child’s Needs

Just because a school receives the best reviews doesn’t mean that it’s the best school for your kid. Some children are just more adept at performing in the classroom environment than others. If your child prefers working with his hands instead of reading books, then you might want to look for a school that has a program in electronics, auto repair, or woodworking. These programs could help him learn the skills that he will need to find a job after graduation.

Consider Whether the School is Convenient

In many cases, you and your children will get the most out of a school when you choose one that is conveniently located for you. A long commute makes it almost impossible for kids to participate in afterschool activities. Choosing a school in your neighborhood could mean that your kids get to enjoy extracurricular activities that will significantly enhance their educational and physical development.

What are some of the qualities that you look for most in a school?

Filed Under: Child Development, Education, Parenting Tagged With: Child, Education, Extracurricular activity

Choosing Video Games for Your Kids

At some point, your child will probably want to get a video game system. All of his friends have them, so he wants to get in on the action. Otherwise, what will he have to talk about at school the next day? Video games aren’t necessarily bad things. Before you start letting your kids play them, though, you should understand the rating system. That way, you can choose games that are appropriate for your children.

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Games for the Whole Family

Video games that are rated EC or E shouldn’t contain anything that parents will find objectionable. EC stands for “early childhood.” These are usually cute games that can help your child develop important thinking and motor skills. E stands for “everyone,” but they could contain some mild violence or language use that would bother extremely sensitive children. Stick to these ratings and your kids shouldn’t pick up any unwanted behaviors.

Games for Older Children

E10+ are games that are deemed acceptable for children ten and over. This category is largely separate from those below it because the games can contain more elements of fantasy. The expectation is that children can differentiate between reality and fantasy by the time they reach 10 years of age.

T stands for “teen.” These games can contain some crude humor, mild violence, and a small amount of blood. They might even have the occasional curse word, but nothing worse than what they’ll see on television.

Games for Adults

Games that are rated M and AO are for the 17 and older crowd, not kids. They can contain anything from extreme violence to graphic sexual content that could confuse kids.

Filed Under: Child Development, General, Parenting Tagged With: Child, Entertainment Software Rating Board, Video game

5 Ways To Teach Children About Money