Money Rehab with Nicole Lapin - 5 Ways to Teach Your Kids (and Yourself!) About Money

Episode Date: November 5, 2021

No five-year-old wants to sit in front of the computer learning how to do online banking or watching their parents write a check. But because we don’t learn about money in school (even though we should!), kids learn money habits from their parents. Here’s how to teach them well. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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money is working as hard as you do. So why overcomplicate your money? Keep it simple with Bank of America, your one-stop shop for everything you need today and the goals you're working toward tomorrow. To get started, visit bofa.com slash newprosmedia. That's b-o-f-a dot com slash n-e-w pros p-r-o-s media. bfa.com slash newprosmedia. Hey guys, are you ready for some money rehab? Wall Street has been completely upended by an unlikely player, GameStop. And should I have a 401k? You don't do it? No, I never will. You think the whole world revolves around you and your money.

Well, it doesn't. Charge for wasting our time. I will take a check. Like an old school check. You recognize her from anchoring on CNN, CNBC, and Bloomberg. The only financial expert you don't need a dictionary to understand. Nicole Lappin. One of my most impassioned rants, which you can probably recite for yourself by now,

is that we should learn financial literacy in school. It's absolutely nuts to me that we don't. So many financial mistakes are made completely by accident. I mean, think of how many missteps we could avoid if we just learned the proper money moves when we were young. I digress. But because personal finance isn't taught in school, to learn about money, we turn to the source for all our answers to the questions that don't get discussed in the classroom. Our parents. This has been on Money Rehabber Jasmine's mind. Here she is. Hey, Nicole. My name is Jasmine and I'm a nurse in Phoenix. I definitely haven't always made smart

decisions with my money, but I just didn't know any better. No one taught me about money when I was growing up. My parents didn't have any money, so I think they avoided talking about it with us just because it caused them so much stress. I have a two-year-old daughter and I want to make sure I teach her about money young, but I'm not sure the best way to do it. What advice do you have? Teaching kids about money is not easy. No five-year-old wants to sit in front of the computer learning how to do online banking or watching their parents write a check, especially in these COVID times. Kids would rather be playing outside or learning some new TikTok dance. Who can blame them? But teaching kids about money at a young age is super important,

and the way that you talk to them about money is really what matters. Kids are really sensitive to stress, so if they internalize that money is only a source of anxiety and tension for their parents, they might learn to be avoidant around all things money, which will prevent them from developing healthy money habits. It's great that you're thinking about this now, Jasmine, while your daughter is so young. Sure, teaching her about banking is probably not the best lesson to squeeze in while she's still learning to count, but raising her with a sense of money will set her up to be independent, financially savvy, and prepared in case of an emergency. Thankfully, there are some fun and simple ways to teach your kids about the dollar. Here are my five recommendations. Number one, go old school.

Who remembers the piggy bank? One of the more fun money lessons during childhood was inserting a few coins into a ceramic pig and watching the pile grow. There's something so exciting about seeing your earned money, physically putting it into savings, and waiting until you absolutely need to smash that little piggy wide open. Or at least open the little thing on the bottom. I was more of that type of kid. But don't forget to also show your kids how credit cards work. With more places going cashless during COVID, use this time to teach your kid all about the different kinds of credit and debit cards. Number two, make a trip out of it. When you go to the bank to withdraw cash or get coins for the

laundry machine, let's say, bring your kid along. Turn it into an outing, like a fun field trip, and explain who the tellers are, what the vaults do, and where the money goes once you deposit it. If you really want to get into the field trip idea, you could even use the time as a little history lesson about money and why we have banks in the first place. By letting your kids see the physical space where money is transferred, kept, deposited, and withdrawn, they'll be able to imagine an entire world and better understand how the system works. Number three, be transparent. It can be difficult to tell your kids how much you spend on groceries every month or what rent costs or the cost of car insurance. We often want to shield our kids from those kinds

of realities, but it's better to be upfront. As they get older, they won't be blindsided by the costs of living and they will be better prepared to make smart financial decisions. This doesn't have to be a serious sit-down talk, but rather something interactive. After you take them to the grocery store, show them the receipt. If your kid wants ice cream, steer them to the frozen food aisle

and ask them to price compare brands. Also flip the script. Ask your kids how much they think the items might cost. They might think your house costs 100 bucks, which depending on their age could seem like a lot of money. Use their answers as a teaching moment. Number four, budget, but make it fun. If you have an older kid like a teen or adolescent, they probably already have a phone. They might already be starting to work. Jasmine, I know this may feel

very far into your future as you're looking at your two-year-old, but believe it or not, your toddler will be a teen. And when that happens, it will be important to teach your daughter that cell phones aren't just for Instagram and socializing. They can also be valuable tools to help them budget and lead by example. Download money management apps like Mint or EveryDollar on their phones. Something you can also use and you can show them how to manage. Like Fitbit or Fit or other tracking devices. These tools can be actually a very fun way to manage money.

Try even making a game out of it. The person who can save the most money per week gets the prize. Number five. Money games. We all know Monopoly is a classic board game and a not-so-subtle way to teach kids about money. Try to incorporate these lessons about saving, mortgages, real estate into other games too. If your child likes to play house, let's say, ask them how much their home cost and how they got the money to buy it. If your kid likes Barbies, get them to think about Barbie's dream house and convertible in a financial way. By incorporating money into playtime, your kid will start thinking about finances as just another part of life.

For today's tip, you can take straight to the bank. Money isn't usually the most exciting topic for kids or even big kids. But there are ways to teach your child about money that is both fun and helpful. Remember that the most important strategy, however, is by setting your own example. Kids are so observant. If you spend frivolously, they'll think that's okay, no matter how often you tell them to budget. frivolously, they'll think that's okay, no matter how often you tell them to budget. Money Rehab is a production of iHeartRadio. I'm your host, Nicole Lappin. Our producers are Morgan Lavoie and Mike Coscarelli. Executive producers are Nikki Etor and Will Pearson.

Our mascots are Penny and Mimsy. Huge thanks to OG Money Rehab team, Michelle Lanz for her development work, Catherine Law for her production and writing magic, and Brandon Dickert for his editing, engineering, and sound design. And as always, thanks to you for finally investing in yourself so that you can get it together and get it all.