Your family budget affects more than just you! In fact, the welfare of your entire family depends on the successful management of a budget.
And that’s especially true if you have kids, since they are directly affected by your financial decisions.
That’s why it’s great to involve your kids in the family budgeting process from an early age. Developing an understanding of personal finance will set them up to make sound financial decisions later in life.
Find financial teaching opportunities in everyday life and teach your kids about budgeting, money management, and, should they run into trouble, info on solutions available, like the benefits of consumer proposals.
Wondering how to get started? Check out these 6 top tips on getting your kids involved in managing the family budget:
Use Chores as Teaching Moments
There’s no better place to introduce your kids to the concept of a budget than by letting them earn money for chores.
It’s a great way to show your kids firsthand the concept of working to earn money for their needs and wants.
And make sure to discuss the concept of saving with them, too! When they see a toy or other item they want, let them add up the money they’ve earned to see if they’re able to buy it themselves.
The ability to earn their own money is something that’s always exciting for kids, and teaching them to save money to reach a goal is a great budget lesson that will have them beaming with pride when they’re able to use their savings for something they wanted.
Model Good Money Habits
Kids are natural mimics, and they’ll learn more from watching your own relationship with money than from anything else.
That means it’s important that you also have a healthy relationship with money. If kids see their parents splurging on nonessentials and then struggling to pay monthly bills, they’ll think that behavior is normal.
Instead, get excited about finding ways to save money, and talk about them with your children.
When your kids see you making regular deposits to a savings account, comparison shopping, or paying bills as soon as they’re due, they’ll understand the importance of managing money carefully.
Plan a Family Budget Night
Family Budget Night is a great way to teach your child about money. To get started, draw up a family budget together and explain how much money there is to spend in a month.
Even though budgeting is important, it’s equally important to make sure that Family Budget Night is still fun for kids.
So, as you break down the income and expenses, let kids contribute their thoughts on where extra money can go. While saving for a rainy day is important, so is spending some money on fun!
To help make the night special, celebrate a successful Family Budget Night by planning something fun after the budget is done!
Whether you watch a family movie or play board games together, you can spend some quality time with your kids while also working through some life lessons.
Set Family Goals
One of the best ways to get kids excited about money management is to set a goal for something the whole family will enjoy.
For example, saving up for a big family vacation is something that kids and adults can work on together. Consider setting up a jar for loose change and having the whole family contribute.
Then, deposit that money into a dedicated family savings account and show your kids how the account is growing!
Give Family Allowances
Encourage your kids to practice what they learn during Family Budget Night by giving them their own allowance.
Having a regular amount of money to spend will help them learn the basics of money management and responsibility, which is a valuable skill for all age groups!
Give out allowances either weekly or monthly, so that your child learns the value of saving up for a bigger purchase.
And make sure to teach them how to divide the money they receive, so that they learn the importance of balancing spending and saving! Ideally, a percentage of each allowance should go into a savings account.
Introduce Your Kids to Financial Planning Tools
If you’re just learning about money management and budget planning yourself, that’s okay – you don’t have to be an expert to teach your kids the basics.
Start with Family Budget Night and a regular allowance, since these are easy ways of building some basic financial literacy.
Then gradually, as they get older, introduce your kids to more complex financial planning tools, like money management mobile apps or online budget planners.
Getting kids involved in the budgeting process is one of the best ways to start teaching financial literacy.
And when you do that in the right way, your kids will be excited about growing their savings as they learn the basics of managing their money.
The best part of getting kids involved in budgeting is that it will give them the skills they need to manage money as adults. And raising our kids to be happy and successful adults should always be a top priority!