Teaching Kids Financial Survival Skills at MoneyTree AsiaPac - Developing Tomorrow’s Financial Geniuses

TEACHING KIDS FINANCIAL SURVIVAL SKILLS

Most parents love their kids, but many don’t give them the tools they need to survive in the hard world of finance. This is more evident in Asia than anywhere else in the world. Most place greater emphasis on academic excellence than on the acquisition of practical and important “survival skills” such as financial skills.

In doing so, the younger generation may not see the necessity to acquire these skills and in turn, “invest” more of their time into their school work , some of which they would find have little practical use when they join the workforce.

This is part of the general misconception that says “Knowledge is Power”.

In MoneyTree, we have a different opinion - “Knowledge is NOT Power, The APPLICATION of Knowledge is”, as can be seen through the words of Jerome Bruner, Father of Cognitive Psychology:

“Learning is most often figuring out how to use what you already know in order to go beyond what you currently think.”

During a 1996 talk at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, educator Tom Snyder talked about the changes in the sphere of education:

Learning is something that happens between two people. Technology lets people interact with each other; like a book lets us meet a person from another time and place. The transaction takes place between what the writer puts in it and what the reader gets out of it… To know is not enough-you must be able to apply knowledge and demonstrate it in context.

To illustrate just how damaging this lack of financial intelligence can be to a kid, here are two true stories.

Jenny and Jack (names changed) are married, have two kids ages four and six. Jenny is in school full time and works part-time, Jack has a full time job. Every skinny cent this couple makes they spend on new cars, useless incidentals, junk food, etc.

They’re currently going through bankruptcy. The couple is being evicted from their apartment, their internet service is discontinued which Jenny needs for school, and there is little food in the house.

In a discussion, Jack said, “I can’t wait for this bankruptcy to be over so we can get rid of all these bills. I want to buy a new car.” But we can’t lay all the foolishness on Jack. Jenny was paid $100 for helping clean a lady’s house. That money was spent the same evening it was earned. Jenny and Jack hired a babysitter, went out to dinner, went to a movie, and then out for dessert afterward.

So how can they be so stupid? It’s easy; nobody forced them to behave otherwise when they were growing up. Nobody taught them about saving for the things they wanted. Why should they have saved for anything when Mom and Dad paid for them to have what they wanted the instant they wanted it. Nobody taught them the importance in paying off debt; after all, they never had to pay Mom or Dad back. And nobody taught them that bills needed to be paid before entertainment.

Soon though, it’s going to be payback time because this couple will be moving in with Jenny’s mom. How nice for her mom. There’s just one word for this whole scenario. WOW!

Incidentally, when Jenny takes her kids to the store, if they point and scream, she buys. Another generation coming up.

This lack of values regarding the handling and earning of money is also apparent in Joe’s family. You’re going to find this hard to believe, but visualize yourself raising three boys. They are all grown and in their twenties. One is married. All three boys and one’s wife are living with you and your spouse in a two bedroom apartment.

In this situation, the boys don’t feel the need to contribute a cent to the household coffers; they spend their money on themselves. After all, why shouldn’t they? That’s the way they were raised. What Mom and Dad earn is theirs and everything they earn is exclusively theirs also.. The sad reality of this story is that Mom can’t bring herself to boot the boys out. When Dad tried to force the “kids” to move, Mom kicked up such a fuss that he gave up and moved into another apartment.

Here’s some food for thought. If you don’t want your kids to be so ill prepared that you and the kids end up paying a huge price, there’s a short list of things you will need to do.

Unless it’s a holiday or birthday, don’t purchase toys for your kids. The exception would be if the child has done something really worthy of a reward. Under no circumstances should you reward a child for misbehavior and demands. Examples of that would be screaming tantrums or nagging to get you to buy something.
Pay the kid an allowance, (around seven years old you can start this) and make it sufficient to purchase clothes and pay for entertainment that is exclusively for him or her. That would include new toys, going to the movies, etc. Teach your child that necessities come before nonessentials. Clothes for school come before movies, skating, new toys, and so on.
Teach your child to put aside extra money when he or she wants to purchase a more expensive item. Don’t allow the child to borrow for it unless there is a very good reason. For example, the purchase of his Scouts’ uniform .
If you loan your child money, see that it gets paid back. If your child breaks something borrowed from another, see that he or she replaces the item Also insist the child returns anything he or she borrows.
Sit down with your youngster and teach him how to budget her allowance. This instruction will help her when she is just starting out on her own.
Teach your child how much is lost by spending too much for an item that could have been purchased elsewhere a lot cheaper. For instance, a can of drink out of a machine for $1.20 that can be purchased at a store for a dollar.

If you tend to be like Jenny and Jack, it’s time to get your act together or you’ll always be scrambling for a buck. Get the training you need in finances so you will be a good parent and good example for your children.

To add to these, credit card debts amongst the younger generation is at an all time high, young entrepreneurs are closing down their businesses as fast as they were set up and the rising cost of education has made it difficult for the lower income to raise their station in life, and creating a situation of hopelessness amongst the needy

Some of these six rules may seem harsh, but your job is to teach your child survival skills and in our society one of those skills is the ability to handle money wisely. This is just as important a part of your child’s training as his or her formal education. If you fall down on the job, not only will your child pay the price as an adult, society will pay it.

In addition, your negligence could well come back to bite you Think about your kid moving back home with his or her spouse and your grandkids in tow. If that happens, you may wish you had done something years ago.

That’s why at MoneyTree, we believe that to effectively solve these problems, education is the only path with Long Term results. The problem needs to be addressed Early, while the individual is still at an age where good habits can be taught… and acquired

With this in mind, through our existing infrastructure, we plan to use Education as a tool and a series of Interactive Activities (based on our “Learning Through Play” principle) to implement the MoneyTree syllabus - making the learning process - a fun-filled experience.

The content of the entire MoneyTree Program is built upon 3 Principles (named RIM):

a) Relevance : The entire content takes into account actual practices in the commercial world, current market conditions and the business & investment landscape. Students are taken on an educational journey that gives them an insight to the spoken and sometimes unspoken rules that govern the world of commerce and industry

b) Interactivity : Our content evolves around the findings that students learn best when they are engaged visually and through audio, participate in experiential learning and ultimately share their experiences. As such , all sessions are highly interactive and draws students to participate.

c) Measurability : It is imperative that a students progress throughout the program is measured to ensure that inherent weaknesses can be addressed for optimal results. At every step of the way, through our Work Sheets, Assignment , Simulations, Portal Game Play and Activities, we have assessment measures in place to track the student’s progress.

Give Your Child A Financial Head start today!

For more information on MoneyTree, contact us at (T) 6338 5635, (@) support@MoneyTree.sg or visit our website www.MoneyTree.sg