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Reader Q&A: I Want To Help My Kids Learn About Money. Not Sure How To Start
"I want to help my kids learn about money, but I’m not sure where to start. How do I teach them good habits without overwhelming them, or making it boring?"
Vanessa, teaching your children about money is stellar parenting. By starting with money basics and progressing to real-world money decisions, you can make the learning fun.
First, it's important to consider your children’s age and their understanding of math and the use of money. Then think about which financial concepts would be easiest for them to understand. By using simple language, you can start having conversations about money.
Let's break it down.
Focus on money basics for children ages 3-7
Younger children can understand the value of coins and bills. Create a simple learning experience by having your children collect coins from the couch, pockets, and bags. Lay out all the coins and talk about how they differ in size, color, and value.
Once they understand this concept, you can move on to talking about dollar bills and their different values.
If they respond well to this or similar activities, you can take things up a notch. Use some of those coins they’ve collected and take them to the store. Show them how they can use their money to buy a low-priced item.
Your child will feel so proud when they use their four quarters to buy a bag of chips.
Once they understand basic value and the use of money, you can start having conversations about how money is earned. This is an opportunity to talk about how you earn money by working.
Additionally, children at this age do well with talking about saving money. Introducing a piggy bank can create excitement over saving money they get from their birthdays or other celebrations.
Introduce money management skills to children ages 8-12
Slightly older children can understand how to manage their money, what to save, and what to spend. Say your child wants to buy something with their leftover Christmas money. This is an opportunity to talk about intentional spending.
Start asking your children what they want to buy with their money and why. Say they want to buy a new backpack. Instead of going out and buying the first bag they see, introduce the concept of comparison shopping.
Talk about what type of backpack they want, then compare prices in person and online.
These conversations will show your children they have options when it comes to spending their money and help them avoid impulsive spending.
Likewise, you can also introduce the concept of banking. Bring your child along when you visit the bank, and talk to them about putting money in and taking money out of your account.
Explain why banks are important and why we use them. You can also check with your bank about opening a custodial account for your child.
Now being realistic, the older children are the more they tend to tune out their parents. Don’t be discouraged if you get a little pushback from your children or if they seem unresponsive. Continue having money conversations, and little by little, they’ll start to make an impact.
Teach your teens ages 13-18 about financial independence
Older children have more opportunities to start earning money through an allowance, part-time or summer job. Receiving their first paycheck can tempt them to spend all their money on hair accessories and gadgets from Temu.
While it’s fun to splurge, earning money at a young age is a great opportunity to learn and practice budgeting. Introduce budgeting as something that has advantages and disadvantages, instead of something that restricts their fun.
For example, if your teen receives $100 from cleaning your neighbor’s garage, help them set a budget. They can put $50 toward their soccer team’s trip to the National Championships, $20 towards their savings, and $20 on going to the movies.
This age group is also a great time to help them set and achieve bigger savings goals, like saving up for college or a car.
The closer your children are to adulthood, the more you can start talking about how credit and debt work. Say they don’t have enough money to pay for a new phone. You can offer to give them a loan of $200 and say they can pay back their debt by paying you $20 a week until their debt is paid off.
These exercises can lead to discussing how credit and debt work in the world, along with dicussing topics such as interest. You can reinforce the importance of never borrowing more money than you can pay back.
Little by little, you can introduce what a credit score is and how it affects their future purchases, like buying a car or renting an apartment.
The more you see your children understanding the different aspects of money, the more you can start talking about more complex topics.
Sometimes you don’t have to plan out an entire lesson on money. You can simply take advantage of ordinary moments.
For example, when you’re at the grocery store, you can start pointing out the costs of different items to help younger children associate the value of money.
When you’re at the checkout, involve your children in the process. Younger children can read the total out loud and help you pass cash to the cashier. Older children can help you set a budget for your grocery shopping.
Likewise, when you’re doing your budgeting for the month, you can talk about your process, highlighting income and different bills that need to be paid.
Being the adult, it’s almost automatic to just focus on grown-up tasks like paying bills and managing money. However, the moments you’re working with money are learning opportunities in disguise.
Introduce an allowance or ways to earn money
Having your children work and earn an allowance is a practical way to teach them about money. My mother would have me clean different rooms in the house, and I’d earn $5 for every task I completed. This helped me to start saving money at an early age and empowered me to make money on my own.
Start by assigning age-appropriate chores that your children can complete in exchange for money. You can also help them create their own business of doing yard work or housework for neighbors or family members. This is a great way to help them monetize their skills.
Allowing children to earn their own money can be empowering and set them on the right track for better money management in the future.
Help your children save money
Learning to save money at a young age is a life skill your children will use for the rest of their lives.
Start building saving habits by giving each child a clear jar or an envelope, and have them pick one thing to save up for. It could be a new toy, going to the movies, etc.
Then talk about adding money from their allowance to their savings, every week or month, so they can start to see their money grow.
Talk about wants vs. needs
Among all the saving and earning your children are doing, it’s important to talk about the difference between wants and needs.
For example, they might want a new game for the console, but they may need to buy new soccer cleats. This is a great opportunity to talk about how buying new cleats is a need, because their soccer team has upcoming games. The new game console is a want, something they might really want right now, but waiting to purchase it won’t affect their daily life.
Conversations around wants vs. needs aren’t about depriving children but more about delayed gratification. We use our money to pay for our needs first, and later we plan to spend money on our wants.
These conversations also reinforce other money concepts like budgeting for both wants and needs, and saving money for purchasing things we desire.
In the beginning, it might be uncomfortable for your child to accept that money can’t always be spent on visits to Disneyland. However, having these conversations early will help your children become financially savvy adults who can budget for both paying rent and taking a vacation.
Help your children set mini goals
A fun concept that can help your children better deal with delayed gratification and intentional spending is to set mini goals. These goals can be standalone or work towards a bigger goal.
Say your family wants to take a trip to Disneyland. Each family member can have a mini goal to save a portion of the cost of the trip.
You can also have standalone goals, such as saving $5 every week or saving $100 by the end of summer.
Teach by example
Money conversations are great, but what can really drive the lessons home is teaching by example. Start to share a little more about your money journey.
When you’re looking to buy a new coffee maker, talk about how you did some comparison shopping.
Even though it might seem like children ignore their parents a majority of the time, they actually pay attention more than we think. When you’re at your kitchen table with a calculator, piles of receipts, and papers, your children are watching you. They are curious about what you’re doing.
Be mindful when you’re talking about money. Most of us will complain about money from time to time, but those little ears will pick up those negative talks. Being intentional when talking about money, even when you’re not talking with your children, can make an impact.
Include children in family discussions about money
Thinking of moving to a more affordable area, want to sell some old items to make some extra cash? There are countless money decisions you can share with your children to help them understand different applications of money.
Remember, these money talks don’t have to go into every single detail. Talking about a 401k and investment funds may be a little much for a seven-year-old. But talking about saving money for the future, when you stop working, is something they can understand.
Make learning about money fun and hands-on
Remember that learning about money can be fun. There are numerous money games you can play as a family. Here are some of our favorites.
Monopoly: a classic board game that uses fake money yet teaches players about buying and selling property
Family shop: Using fake money or real money, set up a pretend shop in your home by adding price tags to certain items. Give your children a set amount of cash and have them go “shopping.”
Budget challenge night: Ask each child to work with a pretend budget, for example, $50, and give them a menu of options for meals, entertainment, travel, and gifts, each with its own price. Then have your kids design a day or weekend that fits within their budget. Once everyone is finished, reflect on each person’s budget and why they made certain choices.
There are also kid-friendly money apps such as Greenlight and Chorepay.
Don’t forget money books for kids as well. Some of our favorites are:
With all the ways to start conversations around money, the most important thing to remember is to keep the conversations going. Make talking about money as common as talking about the weather. Eventually, you’ll start to build a culture where your children are curious, interested, and excited about money.
When we don’t talk about finances, or only bring up money when it’s related to paying bills or not affording something, we can unintentionally create a negative perception around money.
Money is simply a tool. It helps us get things we want, and your conversations can help your children see money as something useful.
With all these ways to teach your children about money, remember to be patient with your children and yourself. You may have trouble explaining something, they might get bored, but keep trying.
Find ways to integrate money conversations into what they’re already doing. Create a reward system when they save money or read a book about money.
The more you work at it, the more your children will grow up to be financially confident individuals.
PLUS when you sign up for a free course, you can schedule a completely free call with one of our amazing Clever Girl Finance mentors. WE ARE IN YOUR CORNER!
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Clever Girl Finance isn’t just about money. We are about freedom, choices, and confidence. We know how overwhelming finances can feel, especially when you’re juggling career, family, and personal goals. That’s why we’ve built one of the largest personal finance communities for women, with over 100,000 women learning, growing, and winning with their money together.When you subscribe, you’re not just signing up for financial tips, you’re joining a movement. You’ll get access to relatable, judgment-free advice designed to help you ditch debt, save consistently, and invest with confidence. We break down money topics in a way that’s simple, practical, and actually fun. Whether you want to build your first emergency fund, pay off thousands in debt, or finally start building wealth for the long term, we’ve got the tools and support you need. With our resources, tools, and strategies, you’ll know you’re not alone on this journey. Subscribe today—because your future self deserves the financial freedom you’re dreaming of!
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