Money-savvy kids grow up to be money-savvy adults, but many K-12 schools in the U.S. don’t offer financial literacy education.
As a result, this task often falls to parents. And, even if parents don’t talk to their kids about money, their kids are listening and watching — and often modeling their financial behavior.
Jonathan Sanchez, co-founder of Parent Portfolio, didn’t want his kids to “feel overwhelmed or intimidated by money,” he writes in CNBC Make It. That concern inspired him and his wife, Jacqueline, to take control of their finances: paying off debt, starting to invest and building a net worth of $1 million. Today, they help others do the same through their personal finance blog, Parent Portfolio. (1)
“Talking about money is a regular practice in our home,” he says. “Our kids don’t see money as a mystery box, but as a tool that they feel confident about using.” And there are five simple phrases he uses with his kids to instill key financial concepts and get them excited about saving and investing. (1)
No special tools or financial expertise are required — just simple mindset phrases any parent can incorporate today.
Many American adults struggle with financial literacy. The ninth annual Personal Finance Index from the TIAA Institute found that financial literacy remains low among U.S. adults, who were only able to correctly answer an average of 49% of the index questions. (2)
Yet, those with higher financial literacy are more likely to spend less than their income, build an emergency fund and plan for their long-term financial future, according to a report by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) Investor Education Foundation. (3)
Research also shows that kids form money beliefs from a young age. By age three, kids can already grasp basic money concepts, and by age seven, “many of their money habits are already set,” according to Beth Kobliner, a leading authority on personal finance for young people. (4)
More than half of American adults (56%) say their parents didn’t discuss money with them, according to a Fidelity survey. (5) So it’s perhaps not surprising that a Wells Fargo survey found that almost a third (32%) of parents feel uncomfortable talking to their kids about money. (6)
But conversations can be simple, conversational and even fun. Millionaire dad Sanchez says these are the five phrases he uses to teach his kids about money:
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“You can make money while you sleep.” This idea “sounds like magic to a kid, and that’s exactly why it works,” says Sanchez. It introduces how compound growth works in saving and investing.
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“Saving can help you avoid stress in the future.” Kids might not have to worry about rent or car payments, but unexpected expenses can still crop up, like a “broken bike chain or a school fee they forgot about,” says Sanchez. This helps them understand the importance of an emergency fund.
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“You don’t want to work forever.” By teaching kids about investing from an early age, they’ll learn how this could open up options later, such as retiring early. It’s also an opportunity to teach them about lifestyle inflation, so their spending won’t increase automatically as their income grows.
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“Save to get something you really want.” Credit cards and BNPL (buy now pay later) apps make it easy for kids to buy whatever they want, whenever they want, “but debt can turn that momentary happiness into long-term stress,” says Sanchez. Instead, he encourages his kids to save for something they want, rather than relying on credit.
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“Value what you worked so hard for.” Sanchez says his kids take better care of the things they save for “because they understand the effort it took to earn them.”
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In the U.S., companies spend about $17 billion each year marketing to children. And it’s not just traditional TV commercials, but also social media influencers, product placement in YouTube content, embedded ads in mobile apps, and even branded online games. (7)
So talking about money — and modeling positive money habits — should begin from a young age.
Parents can start talking to their kids about money when they’re in the second or third grade, David Anderson, PhD, a clinical psychologist at the Child Mind Institute, said in a recent article. “That’s when most kids’ math skills get to the point where they’re able to understand this kind of arithmetic.” (8)
Simple, consistent repetition can often be more effective than one-off lessons — like repeating the five phrases that Sanchez recommends. But parents also have to live the habits they want their kids to adopt. Several studies show that children model their family’s financial habits and attitudes around spending, saving and attitudes toward debt. (9)
That might mean creating a budget before heading to the grocery store and then sticking to it, or fixing things when they break instead of throwing them away, according to the Child Mind Institute. (8) Even something as simple as explaining why you’re choosing a generic brand at the grocery store and how it helps you save money can become a teachable moment.
Framing the message is also important. For example, telling a child you can’t afford to buy them a new toy lands differently than telling them that you’re choosing to put that money toward the family’s savings instead. Or, you can help them understand the trade-offs: If we buy this new toy, we can’t put that money in our vacation fund.
Teaching money-savvy habits to your kids doesn’t have to be difficult. Like millionaire dad Sanchez does, five simple phrases — on repeat — can help instill money lessons they’ll carry with them for life.
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CNBC (1; TIAA (2); FINRA Foundation (3); PBS (4); Fidelity (5); Ipsos (6); enx2 (7); Child Mind Institute (8); Springer (9).
This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
