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How to teach your kids to start saving

savings

This post was sponsored by Sanlam.

As a mom of three, I feel like it is my duty to teach my kids the importance of saving and the value of money while they are still young.  

I struggled with money for a long time and, to be honest, I am still learning about budgeting and everything that comes with it.

If there is anything I learned in the last year, is that having an emergency fund is so important. If it were not for savings, I am not sure how I would have been able to continue doing what I love as an entrepreneur right now.

It is my responsibility as a parent to demonstrate good financial behaviour for my kids – it is not always easy but I am trying.

The question many parents ask is where does one even start?! Hopefully, these methods I share can help you get started.

In the last year, a lot of things changed in my household including the amount of money we spend on birthdays and Christmas gifts per child. We have also introduced our eldest to the world of entrepreneurship.

The best way to introduce your kids to money is by setting an example for them. Your money habits affect how they view it.

Start with the basics when it comes to saving

  • Explain what money is and what it is used for.
  • Let them see you using cash for purchases, so they get an idea of how money is being used in the real world, the value of an item, and what a receipt means.
  • Teach them the difference between debit and credit.

Give them a glimpse into your bank account so they can see that a card does not have an infinite amount of money available and that it is linked to an actual bank account.

Short term Goals

  • It is easier teaching kids about short-term goals when it comes to money so use a scenario that would work well for this, example toys.

If you really want that toy, you need to work hard for it since mommy and daddy cannot buy it for you right now.

  • What can you do to save money towards this toy?
  • How long will it take you to save up for this toy?
  • Do you have an idea of when you want to buy this toy? Put a date on it to motivate them.

Give them opportunities to make money

  • The only way they are going to learn the value of money is when they need to work for it.

The easiest way to start is by letting them earn money for helping you around the house.

  • Allow them to negotiate rates and hours with you.

Get them excited about money management

Get a savings jar so they can physically see their savings grow over time.

Sanlam recently launched its free Sanlam Savings Jar app, which uses Augmented Reality and animation – in the form of a life-size growing dragon – to teach children the wonders of saving.

saving

This is a fun interactive way to teach your child about saving money while also encouraging them to think about budgeting and ways to earn money in the real world.

As their “treasure” grows on the app, their virtual dragon grows too, catapulting them into a world of imagination where they can learn the value of setting goals and working towards them.

We want our kids to learn about…

  1. Setting a goal.
  2. Planning for that goal.
  3. Creating a budget to achieve that goal.
  4. Saving towards the goal.
  5. Understanding delayed gratification.
how to teach your kids to start saving

They say it takes 21 days to form a habit so why not use this opportunity starting now to teach your little ones about the wonderful world of savings?

Sanlam has a 21-day savings challenge that I encourage you to do with your kids, visit Sanlam.co.za and for more about the app, visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRCRH4DJPsM

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Hi, I'm Shan. I'm an entrepreneur and a sucker for good adventures. I was listed in Forbes Africa 30 under 30 2019 and just recently launched my start-up – MomSays.

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