How Financial Education for Kids Takes Advantage of Opportunities

It’s important to start reaching children with lessons about finances early, before negative habits become ingrained. When kids are young, many situations offer opportunities to mold positive behaviors for handling money. That’s where financial education for kids can come into play.

First, every child is born into a unique situation. The family’s socioeconomic status makes a difference in terms of the challenges children face. Those with low SES are likely to meet more financial insecurities. Those of higher SES will probably have more upward mobility. In any case, there is hope for kids to build positive financial habits.

Second, behaviors developed in childhood are major indicators of a person’s future financial security. Behavior is shaped by parents, advertisements, peers, and environmental factors (such as area of residence, urban vs. rural, available resources, etc.). Money habits start forming essentially at birth. Kids soak up information like sponges, and some of the behaviors they adopt when they’re young can last into adulthood.

Third, kids form emotional connections with money that can indicate their financial state and whether they’re willing to work toward greater financial security. A person’s feelings and attitudes have powerful influence on their confidence and competence around handling money decisions.

Finally, financial education for kids is sorely lacking in our public schools. Most kids will never get any formal training in how to handle money. They learn most of their habits from parents and peers, many of which are negative. And when financial education for kids is available, the programs being offered are frequently subpar in terms of content and behavioral impact.