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The
Three Little Pigs: Your Child and Money
by Scott W.
Danger, CPA
I have a ten-month old daughter. As a
first-time parent, I wonder how I will handle many things. Lately, I’ve
been thinking about how and when I will introduce my daughter to the
concepts of money and saving and spending. I then realized that I have
probably already started this process. While I’m sure she does not
understand the concept of money, I know she knows what a grocery store is.
I know she knows that we take things from the shelf and put them in our
cart. She also is learning that she is not allowed to do this. She also
knows that the lady in the checkout line always smiles at her. She sees
her dad give the lady some green paper and then we leave with our bags.
Does she understand money and the transaction that took place? I doubt it.
But, every week we go to the store and every time we are there, Dad gives
the nice lady his green paper and every week we leave with our bags.
Eventually, it will sink in. When we give someone the green paper, we get
things. That’s the concept. Even at ten months, they are learning.
In doing research for this article, I discovered that most experts
agree that children should first have their own money to spend at age three
or four. At this age, money should be something visual. A piggy bank is a
great way to teach children the concept of money and spending, saving and
investing. As I was searching the Internet for more information on this
topic, I found the following idea submitted by a reader on an investing web site. The concept is
simple, but it teaches children about the benefits of saving and investing
and spending in a simple and visual way.
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