Kids, Let's Talk About Money
- Tab 1The Money Talk
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- Tab 6Additional Resources
The Money Talk
Talking about money with your kids can be hard. Where do you even start? We have made it easier for you with age appropriate resources and activities to do with your children including additional resources from the American Bankers Association (ABA), FDIC, and the Federal Reserve.
For All Ages
Remember to keep them in the conversation. We aren't saying make them experts, but showing them how money works will create good habits that will stick with them for the rest of their lives. Start small and grow from there.
Prepared for informational purposes only.
Grades Kindergarten - 2nd
The first introduction to the financial world.
Topics
Counting Coins and Bills
Teach your young children the names and value of each coin. Use the Counting Money worksheet to help your child identify what each coin looks like and then have then write in the value of each coin on the line.
Want vs. Need
Knowing the difference between wants and needs can be hard for children to understand. Use the Want vs. Need worksheet to draw a line from each item to match whether it is a want or a need.
Another way to help teach your child the difference is while shopping. Ask them if a candy bar is a need or a want or if socks are a need or a want. This provides a visual learning experience.
Savings Goals
To help your children see their money grow, use the Saving Goal chart. Help your child choose a savings goal and ask them to draw a picture of what they would like to save for. Each time they add money to their piggy bank, help them color in the progress bar on the chart.
For added fun, use labels to dress up a glass jar so your child can see how fast the money found in the dryer or in the couch can add up.
Resources
Prepared for informational purposes only.
Grades 3rd - 6th
Your children have grown from being able to count to knowing how to add and subtract. Now their banking knowledge can grow with them.
Topics
How a Bank Works?
This is a great time to start showing your child how a bank works. Bring them to the bank with you, take them through the drive-thru, show them the ATM, and encourage them to ask questions.
Debit and Credit
Identifying the difference between a debit and a credit transaction can be hard for anyone. The Debit or Credit worksheet provides multiple examples to review.
Supply and Demand
Supply and demand is a topic to introduce outside of day to day banking activities. Use the Supply and Demand worksheet to record the price of one gallon of gas each day for 14 days. After 14 days, ask your child to plot the prices for each day and connect the dots for a visual of how prices change with supply and demand.
Prepared for informational purposes only.
Grades 7th - 8th
The age where money becomes more real.
Topics
Compounding Interest
Use our Compounding Interest calculator and the Compounding Interest worksheet to answer questions about how interest impacts a savings account balance.
Investment Vehicles
No, this isn't about cars. Investing is a powerful tool especially when it comes to retirement. To help your child learn investment terminology, use the Investment Word Search and our Banking Vocabulary to look up the definitions.
Inflation
Inflation is used to measure price changes and overall impact of prices for products and services. The Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland has a video series on this very subject, offering a high level and technical explanation.
Prepared for informational purposes only.
Grades 9th - 12th
Preparing for the Future
Topics
Understanding Credit
A credit score is something that will help you in the future to get student loans or buy your first house or car. What is a credit score? How do I get it? How can I improve it? These are all questions you may have. Check out our Understanding Credit page to review what makes up a credit score and why it is important.
Identity Theft and Scams
Learning what to look out for when it comes to identity theft and scams will be extremely important when you enter "the real world." Too often people all across the world fall for scammers' schemes. Review our Scams Magazine and Scams and Fraud page to learn and protect yourself for the future.
Banking Electronically
At CSB we call this digital banking, whether that be from desktop or by mobile phone. Digital banking provides the conveniences of banking whenever and wherever you want. It is important to understand that this also means the convenience is also available for the bad guys.
To keep your information safe,
- Don't save passwords on a browser or written down on a piece of paper
- Don't use public Wi-Fi connections when accessing bank information
Budgeting
Budgeting can be hard, especially when just starting out on your own. As you look to a future after high school, whether that be into the workforce or to a college, budgeting will always be part of your life.
Resources
Prepared for informational purposes only.
Additional Resources
Websites
Paper Materials
Prepared for informational purposes only.
Prepared for informational purposes only.