Teaching Your Kids About Money

Teaching your kids about money. It’s on your to-do list and you know that it’s a life skill that is just as important as teaching your kids how to swim. But here’s the challenge. You have no idea how to bring it up. How to teach it. Most importantly, when do you start teaching kids about money? Meanwhile, while these questions are swirling around in your head, your kids ask:
  • “Can I buy that toy?”
  • “What does a bank do?”
  • “Are we rich or poor?”
Fully loaded questions, that don’t necessarily have a right or wrong answer. One thing for sure. Questions like these can make some adult heads spin with confusion. The topic of money can be a touchy subject. Have I got news for you! There is a way to tackle teaching your kids about money in a civilized organized manner that is not confusing, intimidating, or embarrassing at all. Introducing Robin Taub (@robin.taub) CPA, CA who recently wrote the book The Wisest Investment. An amazing resource that teaches your kids to be responsible, independent, and money-smart for life. There are many things that I love about this book, but if I could choose one – it’s the way that it’s organized. It’s easy to read. It’s relatable. Best of all, there are specific plans for teaching your kids, no matter how old they are, about money.

How to read the book

You can read the book from cover to cover, but if you want to get to the point where you’re at in your family life, I suggest jumping right to the chapter that applies to the age of your kids, and voila! You will find relatable stories plus a separate section called “Family Discussion” where there are questions that you can discuss with you and your children and put into practice. These five main topics are explained how they relate to each age group.
  • Earn: How you receive your money
  • Save: What to do when you receive your money
  • Spend: Where to use your money
  • Share: Donating to charities and volunteering
  • Invest: Where and how to make your money grow

Ages and Stages

Each age group takes a deep dive into those five golden rules mentioned above. What you will read below just scratches the surface of what Robin discusses. Five to eight-year-olds should be exposed to dollar bills and coins. Talk about where it comes from, (no, not the ATM) and how you use it. What to do with birthday and tooth fairy money and how much allowance should be given. The pre-teen years are a time to explain healthy habits of saving, spending, sharing, and investing. How to think outside the box to earn money when babysitting is not as welcome as it used to be, during  COVID-19. This section reminds me of commitment and how it can impact your life. First jobs with first paystubs are a thrill when your child hits the teen years. Although it is frustrating why a big chunk of the money that was earned goes to the government, for CPP, EI and income taxes. Kids need to understand the details of what they see on their paycheques and navigate our increasingly cashless society. Young adults are in the big leagues, starting to have their own credit card and saving for education, travel and the future. Before they hit “Buy Now” on their laptop, they need to know the danger of debt and how much credit cards charge for interest. Not to mention scams and identity theft.

Relatable examples

As your child gets older and is in (somewhat) control of their money, they will begin to learn that the neighbourhood coffee shop can suck out your allowance money and/or the money that was earned at their first job like a vacuum cleaner. Teaching your kids about a situation like this is best learned by example (that would be you and the characters in the book) along with visual charts. The Wisest Investment has got all of this covered along with further resources from Robin herself. They are all on the website at robintaub.com.

Your own personal Q & A!

Robin Taub encourages each person that picks up her book to personally reach out to her. You can email her at wisestinvestment@robintaub.com with any questions or feedback from her book. Teaching your children about money doesn’t have to be a hard venture, not when you have The Wisest Investment at your fingertips. Plus, just because I’m a grown woman, learning about money never stops. I picked up a few tips while reading it myself – excuse me while I speak to my investment advisor…

I’m so grateful to be able to have the opportunity to write what I’m passionate about and what I think will serve others.  If you would like me to write for a product or service you represent or for your own company, please be in touch.

You May Also Like