Dr LeCrone
05-21-2006, 10:19 PM
A downward economy is causing some parents to take a second look at how much financial information they should share with their children.
In the words of one parent:
We have always been able to provide them with good clothes, plenty of spending money and the assurance of college. Now the economy has caused us to sit down and see just how much we can cut our expenses. Should we talk about money with the children?
In the words of another parent:
We hate to always tell them, “We can’t afford that,” but our income just isn’t what is used to be. We were out of work six months while looking for a new job. We have to have a reserve on hand in case it happens again.
And many parents are wondering if they have provided too much too soon and if their kinds will be able to take the reverses that might come.
Teaching children how to manage money and how to relate to money is an important parenting skill. And it is a skill that should begin early in life. Whether done overtly or not, most children model their parents in attitudes toward and uses of money. Recent studies how shown that children who learned early in life to earn money and to save some are happier adults.
They have learned financial security and the uses of money for pleasure and necessities. Usually they are not crushed by financial setbacks.
Within limits set by an allowance or by money received from gifts, children should, at an early age, learn to make decisions about spending and saving money. Little Johnny was pleased to get a letter from Grandma with two bills inside. “Oh boy,” he cried, “one for the toy store and one for the pig.” Parents can emphasize to young children the importance of saving as well as wise spending. “If you buy this now, you can’t have that later,” they might say.
When children earn money for chores or venture out to earn money on their own, they should be encouraged to save for long term goals, such as college, travel, a car, etc. Entrepreneurial adventures teach the basics of investments and risks. Parents should let the decision-making come gradually, but should let them make a few mistakes. Some failures teach the lesson better than solid successes.
Should parents talk about the family budget with their children? Yes, by all means. But it should be done as an ongoing part of family development. Don’t’ save it until economic reverses come or until they ask for objects out of reach. Prepare your children for money management by teaching them to work, to save and to have sound values about money. Make them money resilient.
If money management has not been a part of your child’s early development, start it now. Without creating anxiety or panic, each family member can have input into making the budget stretch. Teaching finances is a good math skill, as well as an excellent home and family living skills. Housing, utilities, car, expenses, food, insurance, recreation, education, medical costs, become items of reality. Remember it’s much easier to explain whether a new purchase item will fit in the budget than to give them the old pat answer, “We don’t have the money.”
Harold H. LeCrone, Jr., Ph.D. Copyright 1988
In the words of one parent:
We have always been able to provide them with good clothes, plenty of spending money and the assurance of college. Now the economy has caused us to sit down and see just how much we can cut our expenses. Should we talk about money with the children?
In the words of another parent:
We hate to always tell them, “We can’t afford that,” but our income just isn’t what is used to be. We were out of work six months while looking for a new job. We have to have a reserve on hand in case it happens again.
And many parents are wondering if they have provided too much too soon and if their kinds will be able to take the reverses that might come.
Teaching children how to manage money and how to relate to money is an important parenting skill. And it is a skill that should begin early in life. Whether done overtly or not, most children model their parents in attitudes toward and uses of money. Recent studies how shown that children who learned early in life to earn money and to save some are happier adults.
They have learned financial security and the uses of money for pleasure and necessities. Usually they are not crushed by financial setbacks.
Within limits set by an allowance or by money received from gifts, children should, at an early age, learn to make decisions about spending and saving money. Little Johnny was pleased to get a letter from Grandma with two bills inside. “Oh boy,” he cried, “one for the toy store and one for the pig.” Parents can emphasize to young children the importance of saving as well as wise spending. “If you buy this now, you can’t have that later,” they might say.
When children earn money for chores or venture out to earn money on their own, they should be encouraged to save for long term goals, such as college, travel, a car, etc. Entrepreneurial adventures teach the basics of investments and risks. Parents should let the decision-making come gradually, but should let them make a few mistakes. Some failures teach the lesson better than solid successes.
Should parents talk about the family budget with their children? Yes, by all means. But it should be done as an ongoing part of family development. Don’t’ save it until economic reverses come or until they ask for objects out of reach. Prepare your children for money management by teaching them to work, to save and to have sound values about money. Make them money resilient.
If money management has not been a part of your child’s early development, start it now. Without creating anxiety or panic, each family member can have input into making the budget stretch. Teaching finances is a good math skill, as well as an excellent home and family living skills. Housing, utilities, car, expenses, food, insurance, recreation, education, medical costs, become items of reality. Remember it’s much easier to explain whether a new purchase item will fit in the budget than to give them the old pat answer, “We don’t have the money.”
Harold H. LeCrone, Jr., Ph.D. Copyright 1988