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Early financial literacy: Teaching your child money management from a young age

Early financial literacy: Teaching your child money management from a young age

  • November 2024
  • By OCBC Singapore
  • 5 mins read

When it comes to teaching children money management skills, age does not matter. What matters is the approach and how the lessons are tailored to their developmental stage.

Each child’s cognitive skills may vary, but generally, children understand the concept of value from young. It’s just that this perception of value changes as they grow older.

For instance, waving a $100 dollar bill in front of a three-year-old may not draw the same reaction as waving their favourite toy. While an adult may be able to discern the $100 bill as an item of higher value in terms of purchasing power, the child is more likely to grab the toy, which may cost considerably less, as the emotion attached to the toy makes it more valuable than the piece of ‘paper’ that denotes the $100 bill.

Parents may tap on this perception to introduce age-appropriate money concepts to their child from a young age.

Be imaginative in your approach

Toys can be an excellent tool for introducing children to the concept of value and exchange in a fun and imaginative way. For example, you might say to your child, “Would you like a double chocolate chip cookie? If so, would you be willing to let me borrow your toy for 10 minutes?” Alternatively, you could offer, “A plain cookie means you only have to lend me your toy for 5 minutes.” This playful scenario illustrates the idea of bartering, where an item (the toy) is exchanged for something perceived as valuable (the cookie).

If you are uncomfortable using your child’s toys as bargaining chips, consider teaching them about money in everyday situations such as during grocery shopping. Whether you are paying with cash or a card, you can use this opportunity to explain the idea of exchange. For instance, you might let your child pick out a snack, hand them some cash, and encourage them to pay for it themselves at the cashier. This hands-on experience reinforces the understanding that money is necessary to acquire goods and that they must pay before taking items home.

As your child grows and becomes more familiar with numbers and counting, you can introduce play money through interactive games. For example, you could set up a “store” in your home where your child can “buy” snacks from the fridge or “purchase” art supplies like crayons or coloured pencils from the playroom.

Using a variety of coins or colourful paper to represent different denominations can make this experience even more engaging. You could create play money in different sizes and colours to represent various values, helping your child learn how to combine different amounts to reach the total cost of an item. This playful approach not only teaches them about money but also encourages basic math skills.

The early school years

Understanding the value of money and how to manage it from a young age can support your child during their early school years. By age seven, most children are given an allowance and expected to manage their daily expenses and purchases in school without parental supervision.

Having been exposed to simple lessons about money at a young age, it becomes easier to introduce your child to more responsible money management concepts such as saving and budgeting. We will explore this in subsequent articles.

As children learn how the impact of financial decisions made today can affect them later, parents are setting their children up for a lifetime of financial success and well-being.

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This advertisement has not been reviewed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

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