Life Lessons in Saving and Spending (teach ‘um young!)

If there’s one thing I know it’s that life happens when you least expect it. Ask any adult where they thought they’d be and what they thought they’d be doing by this stage in their life and I’m willing to bet zero people would say they’re living the life they planned. But, if there’s something else I know about the way that life gatecrashes your plans it’s that wonderful things can happen and unexpected twists and turns can lead to bigger and better dreams than you ever dared imagine. Take me, for example. The way my perfect family life has pieced together nicely was never something that I sat and wrote out and planned on paper, but here we are, and I wouldn’t change it for the world. Children require life lessons from you that could leave you scratching your head, because if you’re honest, you’re not an expert in absolutely everything! Money is something you can’t ignore. That’s something I’ve been looking into teaching my children about, because teaching good financial planning skills will set your children up for a lifetime.

Consult online free help
Free is my favourite pricetag. These days, you can teach yourself to pass entire university courses using nothing but online resources. So advice on teaching your children how to plan their money is sure to be widely available. See here for a great list of guidance on the topic. Some advice is quite straightforward, such as teaching your children to handle money and appreciate the different values of coins (also a fantastic method of helping your child to learn basic maths!). Some of the other advice goes into slightly more detail regarding money matters, such as teaching your child to associate your digital bank balance with physical money.

Set saving goals
Your child will develop a negative relationship with money if every time they ask for something you give it to them. Instead, create a lifestyle for them whereby they understand that they will receive a certain amount of pocket money each week, and that this must be saved towards a bigger purchase of their choosing. The wait for the money to be saved up will not only help them to understand that there is not a constant flow of money available to them at all times, but will
also help them to appreciate their purchases much more.

Incentives - give to charity
If you feel that your child has too many toys and that money is simply being wasted on new toys that will sit in the corner, have a conversation along the lines of giving to charity. Ask your child to select toys that they no longer play with, and explain that some children who have very few toys would benefit from donations to charity. This method won’t necessarily boost your child’s savings habits, but the stark realisation that some people do not have very much money should help to instill mature feelings of responsibility and careful planning towards money.