12 Aug 5 Important Things to Teach Your Children About Money

As homeschoolers, we have the unique opportunity to teach our children exactly what they need to be taught.  We are able to incorporate many subjects into their education that may have been abandoned or never addressed by the public school system.  I absolutely love that my children can experience the richness of the creative arts, music, cooking, the exploration of nature, physical education, even cursive writing while at the same time not missing out on any of the essentials!

What I consider to be one of the essentials, has never been addressed in school.  To my knowledge, public schools have never taught children about MONEY!  Isn’t this so crazy?!  Money is a universal necessity, yet we all avoid the subject, we side-step the discussion, we even act like money is a negative thing!

Small changes begin at home, so in our homeschool, we set out to change this approach to money.  Teaching children about money starts with the parents.  We must lead by example because our children are watching and learning how we view money and how we manage it.  Here are 5 important things we need to teach our children about money:

1.  Money is not bad and poverty is not Godly.

Who started this whole crazy idea anyway?  We can probably trace the roots of this misconception back to a deep misunderstanding of the Bible, but this concept has buried itself deep into the brains and consciousness of the multitudes.  We need to discard this nonsense and teach our children that money has no meaning until it is used!  Money is a tool which can be used for good or for evil.  It is how we choose to use money that demonstrates whether it is good or bad – or more accurately, whether our character is good or bad!

I think we can all agree that money does not buy happiness.  But, let’s face it, neither does poverty!  Money buys food and pays mortgages, money builds schools and hospitals.  Yes, that money that doesn’t buy happiness allows us to give to charity, it gives us the opportunity to ease others’ burdens, it provides security to our families and gives us freedom.  On the other hand, poverty is a prison.  It contributes to pain, crime and disease.  There is nothing Godly or spiritual about poverty or its’ limited choices.

What if we taught our children to see money as an opportunity and a blessing?  What if our children grew up understanding that money in the hands of good people can do good things?

2.  Money has value.

Is there anything more unattractive than entitlement?  This mentality is increasingly pervasive in our culture and I am on a mission to stop it in its’ tracks in our home!  Of course, as parents, it is our goal to provide for our children, but this can be done without raising entitled children who think their very existence is a right to whatever they demand.

As parents, we can begin to crush entitlement by showing that money has value.  An allowance, for example does not teach value.  I do not hand out money to my children simply because they exist.  Neither do I (now or in the future) pay my children for participating in normal household maintenance – this is expected!  When they grow up, nobody is going to pay them for doing the dishes.  Let’s keep things real!  However, if a child wants to go above and beyond, a commission would convey value and appreciation.  I want my children to understand that money is earned, not given.

3.  Money can be saved, spent or invested.

From the day my children were born, they were given piggy banks as gifts.  Any money that they are given or that they earn is placed in these piggy banks.  As we homeschool and the subject arises, we will often discuss the importance of saving money.  Since my children are very visual, we will empty the piggy banks on the floor and count the money.  We make a big deal about it increasing.

It is never too early to start teaching children about spending money.  Even as toddlers, I would take my children to the Dollar Store with $1 to buy a birthday present for Daddy.  They were responsible for that dollar and handed it to the cashier when it came time to purchase.  It was exciting for them, but at the same time it was teaching self-control, the spirit of giving and generosity, and the value of money.

Obviously as our children get older, we will go deeper into these areas, teaching delayed gratification, credit, debt,  investing, etc., but already because of our very early efforts, our children understand the different ways to manage money.

4.  You are in control of your own prosperity. 

This important point must first be learned by the parent:  we are each in control of our own prosperity.  Our prosperity is not controlled by our paycheck or the economy, it is controlled by the choices we make.  When we truly believe this, we are able to take personal responsibility for our situation and then make any change desired.  Imagine the value of a child growing up, knowing that they have the power and ability to control their own prosperity!  There are no limits when we truly adopt this mindset!

5.  Teach the importance of giving.

What greater gift can we give the world than to raise kind and generous children?  If I am given the grace to do this, I will consider myself a successful parent.  There will always be those who are less fortunate than ourselves.  We must teach our children empathy and generosity to be able to contribute to the well-being of others.  Of course, giving is not always about money – our love, our time and labor are wonderful ways to contribute as well.

As our children grow older, I plan to allow them to choose charities of their choice, to become involved in the community in which they live so they can experience and learn the ripple effect of giving.

Teaching about money begins with us, the parents.  Let’s set an example for our children in our attitudes towards money and our management of money.  It is never too soon or too late to start teaching our children healthy habits and views towards money.  I hope these 5 lessons are a great place to start!