Ever wonder what life is like for a young child growing up in a money savvy household?
My husband and I are committed to raising a money savvy child. And we are starting early. At 25-months old, our daughter, Ruby, has limited exposure to money and currency exchange.
Where do we even begin?
How does one go about teaching a toddler about money, saving money and being frugal with money?
My husband and I looked for teaching opportunities. After a few months of careful observations, we saw the need to teach Ruby about the meaning of ownership and respect for property. This form of teaching has many money consequences. Money not spent on replacing objects is money being saved.
Think about how much money parents might spend replacing their children’s broken or lost objects. What about the amount of money adults in the household spend to replace their things due to a child’s carelessness or negligence? My husband’s supervisor has a term for this kind of spending. It’s the “child tax”. And what about the times when a child tears up as he/she takes money out of the piggy bank to buy a replacement item?
In this post, I discuss four approaches my husband and I have been using to teach our daughter about ownership and the value of caring for her belongings. As you read, you’ll notice a pattern in our approaches. We leverage what Ruby already knows and build upon her knowledge base. This way, we can have some confidence that she understands what we’re trying to instill in her.