April is National Credit Union Youth Month

Financial education is crucial, and we want to help you teach your children about the importance of being responsible with money and saving for the future.

The first step to teaching your kids about money is talking about money. The most effective way to teach is by having frequent discussions and not to lecture. Look for teachable moments and always be willing to answer questions. Sometimes parents don’t want their children to worry about financial matters or think they are too young to understand, but that is not the case. So how to start the talk?

Ask questions.

If you’re going out to eat, talk about the price difference between the options, and ask them which they would choose. If they select the more expensive, talk through what you might have to give up later in the week.

Make them part of your budgeting.

If you’re doing any kind of financial planning for the year, solicit input from your kids. Enlist them in your saving goals—no one watches you more closely than your kids, so they’re natural accountability partners! If you’re uncomfortable revealing too much of your financial picture, you can keep the discussions high level, but involving them makes money less abstract.

Open a youth savings account.

This is the best way to help them to learn to save for what they find meaningful in life. A lifetime of good savings habits can start now!