Have you ever noticed how your little ones light up when they get a shiny new coin? They dream of a trip to the toyshop or an excursion to your local newsagents for a bar of chocolate. They love to jangle the coins they collect in their little pockets or take the change from the cashier when you do the weekly shop.
Research shows that that children develop attitudes towards money at a young age- before even reaching the age of seven. Your kiddos are likely to imitate your financial behaviours, and those of other family members. With this in mind, it is so important to start building good money-habits as early as possible. To get started, try these four fun ways to encourage a good attitude towards saving.
1. Make it a game
We all know that kids learn best through play. It's amazing how far a little creativity and visualization goes, when it comes to making saving more fun. Try using different jars for saving different things. Have your child draw pictures of each thing, that you can stick on the jars to identify them, like a smiling sun to stick on the ‘holidays’ jar.
This will also help your child to understand that some things might take longer to save for than others. They will learn how to prioritize one thing over another for a while. For example, a short-term jar might have a picture of a toy they want right now on it. A long-term jar might have an image of Disney Land on it, something they really want to do, but that the whole family needs to save for.
2. Make a savings chart
Not only is this another incentive to keep up the saving (kids love charts!) but it also teaches your children to plan ahead and see how long they need to save for something before they can buy it/do it. A chart is also a fun, visual way of letting your kids see how much closer they are getting to their goal as the weeks go by. Use a picture of what they are saving for, stickers, markers, whatever you want really, to make them get excited about saving and seeing their savings grow.
3. Let them handle money from an early age
Ideally, your budding savers should be establishing a good relationship with money from the get-go. For your very little ones, try playing shops or restaurants where your child uses "pretend" money to pay for things. This will allow them to develop an understanding of how money works. Board games like Monopoly will also get your kids used to budgeting and "buying" things.
4. Take them with you when you go shopping
Another way to get your children involved when it comes to money is to take them with you when you go shopping. When they reach for the change after you’ve paid, let them take it and count it so they see how it all works. Give them a few Euros of their own, so they can make the decisions on what to buy. Help them compare prices so they come back with as much change as possible. You can even reward them by allowing them to keep change and put it in their savings jar.
These are all fun and entertaining ways to instil an understanding and appreciation of saving money within your little ones. Try them at home and see how you get on. You may even end up raising a money-smart kiddo, giving them invaluable skills, which will stand to them in years to come!
