Kids are kids, and they will always think someone else’s house/car/swimming pool/clothing/bike/fill-in-the-blank is better than theirs.
It’s beyond frustrating, but parents, guardians, caretakers, and teachers–you are not alone! I try hard to maintain a sense of humor about it, but I, too, fall into that black hole of preaching to my kids about spending money responsibly, etc., etc.
I’ve come across some resources, books, articles, and more to tap into (besides our blog) to help you figure out how to raise and teach children the value of frugality and thrift in an age of continuous and overbearing consumption.
- Love this quote! “The words ‘interest’ and ‘debt’ should not be foreign to a kid who’s 14,” by Brian Page, a teacher in Cincinnati who was featured as a “Money Hero” in Money Magazine’s July 2012 issue. To read the article, click here.
- For teachers, the government offers a set of tools to download to teach kids the fundamentals of finance. Click here to see.
- Financial Reality Shows for Teens. For the post about this organization, click here. (Update: my son took a field trip to this show in his freshman year of high school when he was taking a business elective. At the time, what he learned at the show made an impact on him. He immediately became worried about how he’d manage all of his expenses when he is out on his own. Well, rightly so, but I think the show may have scared him a bit too much 😦
- Post about allowances written by a 10-year-old on Frugal Mama’s blog. Click here.
- What NOT to tell your kids about finances. I actually like this article on Yahoo–it has great points. It’s a good guide to the question that most kids inevitably ask…”Are we poor?” or….”How much money do we have?”
- And don’t forget to read these money-and-kid issues:
- What not to say to your kids about money here.
- A post on redefining success and work ethics for kids by Aimee here.
- Questioning why kids need iPhones here.
- What happens when your elementary school-age kid is the only one without a flipping device! Read here.
- And lastly, but not least…posts about PAYING FOR COLLEGE including posts here, here, here, and here (and more to come).
~Marilyn, TFF
Two Frugal Fairfielders 