I think it's wise to start a gradual process of teaching children about finances from the time they begin to understand what you are saying. I don't mean lectures and crazy nonsense, but teaching them the value of a dollar, but most importantly to save and spend equally. I don't think it's good to teach children to be stingy with their money, but I don't think it's good to teach them to be free and loose with it either. Finding that middle point will be the best in my honest opinion.

My son is 6 and he knows that if he wants games, he has to help pay for part of them with is own money. It's not a necessity. However, he also knows that he is not allowed to spend all his money on games. That his birthday and Christmas money will go into savings.

I think about the age of 4, 5 or 6 depending on the child is a good age. However, I just started with my son from the get go in a gentle learning way. I also have him saving aluminum cans to earn money. This gives him a 'job' to earn some wages. So, he understands he must work for money.

I tried teaching my daughters about money and the basics of it was when they first begin to notice it. I think they were 5 to 6 years old when they started to notice that money comes from my wallet or their father's pocket. And when we go shopping they sometimes grab things they like but my husband and I are firm when it comes to buying things. If it is not on our list and not our priority we are not buying it. Amidst tears, we tried to explain to them that why they cannot buy it at the moment. Eventually they learn how to wait. This is already one small step in teaching them that money had to be earned so we have to spend it wisely and never forget to save.

I think it would be best for children to know earlier about finances. Although it won't be easy but teaching them earlier will have both immediate and long term benefits. They will then be able to develop strong habits of saving money and learn how to prioritize what is on their list of things to buy. Eventually they will then be able to learn the true meaning of "investment" and will understand somehow why they cannot get everything they want.
This will help them to avoid accumulating debt when they are in their teens or going to college.

Teaching children about money is general should begin with what we used to have in kindergarten, when I went to school the Ben Franklin Bank Penny account.
The local bank, in Central Islip NY, back in 1965 had a Penny saver account starting with Kindergarten through 6th grade, student would get pennies every week from their moms and dads and place them in their account. It taught lessons in savings and when they went to Jr. High that account began to accrue interest. It also followed Ben Franklin’s age old adage” A penny saved is a penny earned”.
If that seems to young then about third grade age is a great place to begin, teaching them in earnest about money.
If that seems to young, then at the fourth or fifth grade with one or two chores and you pay them, then you also remove a few cents from that pay to place into a savings account. Then a regular old jar or piggy bank and a few coins each week, with the promise not to touch for a while, will often amaze kids
Many parents don’t think that money should be saved in a savings account or that kids should be in charge of money. But teaching them early assures them of good money habits later on in life.

Hi @ jt3, you can teach a child about finances the moment the child understands what money can be used for. But lessons about credit cards can come at a later age, but it has to be before the child is old enough to use the card.

I started teaching my younger brother about finances when he turned five and could receive tips for doing one or two minor chores in the house (my parents taught me at a later age though). I actually bought two money boxes for him; one was a piggy bank and the other was an plastic box with a cover. The piggy bank was for savings while the other was for spending on anything he likes.

I made sure that he always drops equal amount of coins into the two and one day he asked me why the piggy bank weighs more than the other box and I made him understand that the more you save , the more you gain and when you spend more you reduce your finance.

By the time he turned twelve I taught him about credit cards and bankruptcy. Don’t ever think that children are too young to learn about money, you would be surprised at how much they can grasp when you talk to them about it. Today, My brother manages his finance well because he learnt early and it became a part of him as he grew.

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