Five Things Schools Should Teach Kids About Money

Do you ever wonder what your children learn at school? Wouldn’t it be great if they could learn practical lessons about the value and the importance of money? Here are our top five things that we think schools should teach kids about money:

Good Work Leads To Great Pay

Even in the early stages of their life, children need to know that they will not get something for nothing.  Teachers need to stress why working for what they want is important.
They can begin this with a system of rewards at school, where children are rewarded for good work. On some occasions, teachers can offer ‘treats’ and children can choose to save their ‘treats’ for now or later.
Parents can also be encouraged to follow this at home, by helping children save and spend their allowance on useful things only. Children should be encouraged to save most of their money for what they really need and not waste it on sweets.

Saving And Investing Can Be Fun!

When children  get to  university age, they might just want to splurge the cash on a great night out. However, when they need to pay the rent or buy their books, they have no cash left.
But, schools can start teaching children, while they are young, that it is never too early to start saving. If they get into the habit early on it will help them in later life. Perhaps, schools can develop a game where children can make choices as where they can spend, save and invest their money.
Perhaps they can spend their money on food, save for a rainy day or invest in property? Children could be divided into teams and then each child on the winning team gets a bar of chocolate as a reward.

Do Not Get Yourself Into Debt 

Teachers can always work with parents here in helping kids understand the importance of living within their means. Mortgages can be seen as a ‘good’ form of debt, which should be paid off in order to buy your own property.
However, credit cards and loans should be used within reason and are only for emergencies. Sales, shoes or a holiday are not emergencies and will only lead to children spending more money than they are earning.
While teachers can try to curb this earlier, parents should also set a good example for their kids and not purchase more than they need from sales with their bit of plastic. Teachers could get children to create lists for what they really need in the long-term, so that impulse buying is avoided.

Budgeting Might Be Boring But Is Essential

If most people  had the chance,, they would spend their money carelessly, without worrying about the consequences. However, teachers need to get children to understand that they need to keep a record of where they are spending their money each week or month.
Teachers can tell parents to start with a small amount of money each week. Children can note where they spent the money. For example, I spent £10 on toys , £5 on magazines  and had £2 leftover. Perhaps, after looking at this in class, the teacher could indicate that too much is spent on magazines  and not enough is saved.
 Budgeting is also what stops children getting into debt later on in life and in general, they will not have to worry about their money, if they have a budget.

Help Others Who Are Less Fortunate

Teachers can get children involved in charity very early on through educational initiatives. For example, children could fill a piggy bank  with a collection of £1 coins that could be given to charity.
But charity is not always about money. Children should also be encouraged to donate their time towards those in the local community that need it most. Those who do well and make a difference in their community can be awarded class certificates as a reward. This will also be a great example to the other children.
What things do you think schools should teach children about money?

Author Bio:

Rochelle Sampy is a trainee journalist who loves writing for a variety of audiences and interests. In her spare time, Rochelle loves reading about the good and ugly of education and writes for School Stickers.