teaching kids about money

Teaching Kids About Money: The 6 Worst Mistakes

Teaching kids about money requires honesty and humility.

Kids learn to imitate our habits. So if we want our kids to grow up to be financially literate, we need to teach our kids great money habits by modeling them.

I make mistakes with money. Everyone does, and it’s ok to make mistakes. It’s when those mistakes become habits that it becomes a problem.

Here are the worst money habits you can teach your kids!

teaching kids about money

Budgeting without Kids: DON’T Skip This Valuable Time for Teaching Kids About Money

I really believe in having a strong budget, but if you aren’t sharing the process of budgeting with your kids, you are doing them a great disservice. 

Great money management isn’t taught in school. 

Strong money skills are comprised of everyday habits. They are simple, but you must be consistent in them. 

Include them as they get older so they can see how much things really cost, how you prioritize purchases, and you save your money.

Not Teaching About Passive Income vs Active Income

Passive income is any income you don’t have to put much effort into on a daily basis. This can range from investments and savings accounts to real estate or owning a carwash or laundromat. 

Active income is any income from employment or skills and services. 

Passive income is an essential element to building a secure financial future because it creates revenue streams that require very little effort. 

No Emergency Account

Creating a savings net to keep for emergencies is a huge mistake. 

Teach your kids to sit on money by example. Not to mention it will take a lot of stress off you if you know an emergency won’t send you to the food pantry.

That we can have money that we have no particular use for other than it makes us more secure to have it. 

Having the Wrong Mindset

Most people simply see money as a way to acquire things. That’s an oversimplification. 

We really need to teach our kids to see money as security. 

We need to teach them that money is a representation of your time and effort. 

Money takes on much different importance when we see it as a part of ourselves that we toiled for. And double for when you see it as a protection, instead of an xBox or whatever. 

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Sound familiar?

Are you making these mistakes in your homeschool? 

Fear not! Join me in my Facebook Group, Money Savvy Mommas, where we get raw with our money troubles. We celebrate our victories and learn from our mistakes. Together.

13 thoughts on “Teaching Kids About Money: The 6 Worst Mistakes”

  1. Iva Tomic

    Yes it’s very important to teach our kids the value of money. They should know that’s important to have savings and not spend it on things they do need.

  2. Audrey @ Two Pink Peonies

    You’re very right that money isn’t taught in school! So important to teach our kids.

  3. Rianna Eisma Gálvez

    This is going to be helpful to me someday. I have two kids and I could only imagine the things they will ask me to buy for them as they get bigger!

    1. It can get crazy fast! My oldest asked us if he earned enough money to buy a Lamborgini, would we let him buy one. He was shocked to learn that maintenance and insurance cost almost as much as the car itself.

  4. Maria Yakimchuk

    These are great points. I remember taking a personal finance class in college and thought about how this should be a requirement in grade school. Money management is an essential skill for everyone.

    1. I was lucky and did get some of these types of classes in middle school. But unfortunately, the information was quickly outdated, like writing checks. We never talked about types of credit or even accounts.

  5. Emily Seddon

    Yes! I think money management should be taught at a much younger age than it is. We are very transparent with our kids about our financial situation.

    1. I am so glad you are! Being transparent is really important to us, too. As our kids grow, it shows them how much thought we put into purchases, and how hard it is to balance everyone’s needs.

    2. I am so glad you are! Being transparent is really important to us, too. As our kids grow, it shows them how much thought we put into purchases, and how hard it is to balance everyone’s needs.

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