Comments on: How To Teach Teens About Money

By: Joy

Joy — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 12:56:20 +0000

Great article … and super tips all in these comments, too!!! I’ve linked this to my “This ‘n That Thursday” post. Hope lots of others get as much out of it as I have! Happy Thursday!

http://myreasonstoblog.blogspot.com/2010/03/this-n-that-thursday.html

By: Jessica

Jessica — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 04:27:27 +0000

Teaching your children at a young age will give them a very valuable life lesson. I took a personal finance class in college, and I really wish they made a class similar to it mandatory for high school students. So many people turn 18 (and able to get credit cards) and don’t have the slightest clue on how to be responsible with them or even student loans.

By: The Rat

The Rat — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 14:55:25 +0000

@Daniel – It seems like those are great ways at getting your teen to learn the value of a dollar while at the same time being able to appreciate some of the good things in life. Good stuff.

By: Daniel

Daniel — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 17:48:18 +0000

I’ve put my teen into the habit of saving 20% of whatever pocket money he earns for doing chores around the house or of the money earned working as a waiter.
He is learning to discipline himself with using his $30 prepaid cell phone straight talk package from Walmart which gives him 1000 any time /anywhere minutes & 1000 text messages – he has to make sure that his airtime lasts the whole month in order to keep in touch with his girlfriend regularly – so he is learning discipline by using his cell phone time sparingly

By: Kate Forgach

Kate Forgach — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 17:26:59 +0000

Love that this comes from the student’s viewpoint. The Wall Street Journal has a finance column co-written by a man and his two sons that is equally interesting. Thanks!

By: Steve

Steve — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 22:23:47 +0000

There is something for all of us in this. I remember when I was in the Boy Scouts and I was in the process of earning my Personal Finance merit badge. I had a talk about finances with my Dad. He revealved how much money was coming in and how much was going out. Plus he shared what our family’s total net assets were. It was mind boggling to me at 15 years old to grasp how much income a family needed to make ends meet.
Great insight Ryan!

By: Joseph

Joseph — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 15:03:58 +0000

I did not know what my Dad made until i was 17 years old and i saw his pay-stub by mistake. Though i was not surprised i started having a great appreciation of what he used to provide for us. I wish he had shared that with us earlier.

By: The Rat

The Rat — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 04:25:23 +0000

Nice thread, very relevant. Personally, I think its also important for parents to talk with teens about not just the value of a dollar, but personal finance and investing.

I remember when I was in high school taking a couple of business courses, the school curriculum rarely focuses (and still doesn’t in a lot of ways) on personal finance matters, and I remember my dad talking to me about what a stock was, its share price, etc.

Even though it would be a few years before I started investing, it gave me additional confidence that this is what a lot of people do as they plan for retirement.

By: Tim

Tim — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 22:07:08 +0000

Good advice. With all of the college education I received in finance, it contributed very little to dealing with finances in the real world.

Setting up a basic budget, reconciling a checking account, learning the value of a dollar and basic passive investing were self taught.

Knowing this, I’ve begun helping my 8 year old daughter begin to understand as well.

By: Ruby Leigh

Ruby Leigh — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 21:41:43 +0000

Interesting Advice, my parents taught me a lot about money, and always encouraged me to share about how I was doing. They helped me get my own checking account and I paid for most of my “fun” things post 16.

Anyway, I appreciate the thought to keep the openness a two-way street.