Financial Literacy for Kids: Money Lessons Should Start Young

RESOURCES

Organizations

Independent Means – Joline Godfrey offers information on her summer programs and helps parents and kids stay financially fit with a newsletter of monthly tips.

Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy – The California Jump$tart Coalition, part of a national organization based in >Washington>, >D.C.>, is committed to helping solve the problem of financial irresponsibility through education. The coalition works with schools, in classes from kindergarten to 12th grade, to help students understand the value of money. In California, Jump$tart is teaching personal finance to teachers, lobbying policy-makers to include more financial education in school curriculum, and has created a Web page that links finance issues to California math standards> 

Books

The Everything Kids’ Money Book: From Saving to Spending to Investing – Learn All About Money! (Everything Kids Series), >by Diane Mayr (Adams Media Corporation, 2002). Kids 9 to 12 will actually enjoy learning about the basics of money with this light-touch volume.

The Totally Awesome Money Book for Kids (And Their Parents),> by Adriane G. Berg and Arthur Berg Bochner (Newmarket Press, 1993). This award-winning book is geared to the 10 to 18-year old crowd as it teaches the fundamentals of saving, investing, and working, among other essentials about money.

Raising Financially Fit Kids,> by Joline Godfrey (Ten Speed Press, 2003) – A parent’s guide to raising financially sophisticated children, from the founder and CEO of the leading provider of financial programs for kids and parents.

Web Sites and Products

FleetKids – Many local banks offer coloring books and information to help kids understand what it is to set up a savings or checking account. But this site from FleetBoston has nifty games and other interactive tools related to money education.

Moonjar – This money-allocation tool for children hails from Seattle. Kids are taught the Moonjar fundamentals of spending, saving and sharing by collecting funds in a colorful money-box that can be ordered online. The site also has information and resources on how to teach kids about money.

Prosperity4Kids – Agoura Hills mom and entrepreneur Lori Mackey has created several products around her Money Mama Piggy Bank™, which helps kids learn how to allocate their money.

Gregory Keer is a Los Angeles-based writer, teacher, and father of two boys. He is author of the Family Man columns and blog. He can be reached at gregory@familymanonline.com