Teaching Children Money Fundamentals
by
Gregory Grant
Young children learn all kinds of lessons that will serve them well later in life -- how to get along, how to cooperate, and how to interact with others. But what about money? That's a lesson that can be learned at an early age.
"I think it's important at a very young age, actually three years old, to start talking to your kids about money and understanding what real life money issues are about," said Mitch Slater from Merrill Lynch. "Now, at three years old they are not going to understand all of the concepts, but at least understand that there is not an entitlement program out there that just because they see something in a store that means you can go out and buy it."
Teaching Kids a Practical Lesson
One way to help kids learn is by allowing them to earn their own money and then let them spend it as they wish. Parent Dave Bickler gives his kids an allowance to show them how to save money or buy something they have in mind.
"They can go out and earn it by cleaning up the yard or whatever and understanding that you have to do something to get the money...that it doesn't grow on trees," Bickler said.
That's a tough lesson for anyone to learn, but one that will eventually pay off for the young ones.
"The goal is for them to be educated financial consumers by the time they are out on their own," Slater said. "And I don't mean just being in your thirties and thirty-five and married with kids. I'm talking about when your seventeen years old and your sent off to college and suddenly you're out on your own and you've got to deal with things like rent and utilities and cable bills and buying your first car."
Teaching young children about the fundamentals of money can help them become more responsible and make them aware of the advantages of saving their money for those things that are important to them now and in the future.
In recent years, companies have flocked to the web to set up dot.com sites. Initially retail companies caught the attention of investors and consumers alike.
When to sell a stock is as important as when to buy a stock. The investor that goes beyond just looking at the financial pages will find that this kind of in-depth research will pay off in helping to make wiser investment choices.