Help Kids Learn Financial Skills

Money (Photo credit: 401(K) 2013)

Does it seem like every time you turn around, your child is asking you for money? Does your teen know how to balance a checkbook, pay bills, or read a financial statement? A 2007 Charles Schwab survey reported that only one in three teens had mastered these skills.

While a growing number of Wisconsin school districts incorporate financial literacy into their programs, most do not. Parents, aunts and uncles, grandparents, 4-H and other youth leaders can make a difference in the future success of our children by teaching them the basics of saving and spending, debt, budgeting, and financial planning. They can make the biggest difference by modeling good money management practices.

Wisconsin is a leader in financial literacy programs, with many helpful resources for parents and teachers. This year, you may want to check out some of these opportunities and tools:

The Badger State participates in the national public awareness campaign, Money Smart Week®, which was organized by the Federal Reserve Bank in 2002. Scheduled for April 20 – 27, 2013, the campaign offers many opportunities to deepen our knowledge and financial skills. Visit www.moneysmartweek.org to learn more.
Money Moments is a website produced by the Wisconsin Educational Communications Board. Click on the ‘Parents’ tab at the top to find videos about how to teach key money lessons to your kids; visit www.ecb.org/finance. This site also offers tips and lesson plans for teachers on such topics as becoming a critical consumer and risk management.
Asset Builders of America, Inc. is a Wisconsin-based non-profit organization that promotes financial literacy through a variety of programs-including local Money Conferences-with various businesses, schools, and organizations. These include programs in Madison, Milwaukee, the Fox Cities, Menominee Nation, Racine/Kenosha, Rhinelander, and Wausau. Visit: www.assetbuilders.org.
The Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions (www.wdfi.org/ymm) offers the “Your Money Matters” curriculum and other financial education tools. Visit its Kids Page (www.wdfi.org/ymm/kids) for online chapters and quizzes on such topics as the history of money, saving, and investing.
Designed primarily for teachers, the National Institute of Financial Education and Literacy takes place each summer at Edgewood College in Madison. The 13th annual institutes focus on three general topics-”Paychecks, Financial Contracts and Entrepreneurship” (Jun. 24 – 28); “Investor Education, Economics and Insurance (Jul. 15 – 19); and “Credit and Money” (Jul. 29 – 31). Visit www.edgewood.edu/events/NIFEL.aspx for details.
Finally, Jump$tart is a national coalition that offers an abundance of tools and activities to help young people from preschool through college learn financial literacy skills. Visit www.jumpstart.org to learn more and click on the State Activities tab for details on Wisconsin Jump$tart programs.

You don’t need to attend every conference or incorporate every tool to make a difference in a child’s future financial management success. Depending on the child’s age, determine to incorporate one or a few financial lessons into their learning this year, and you’ll be amazed by the progress they can make!

About these ads

About Union State Bank

Honesty, integrity, commitment; hometown values that are our way of doing business. At Union State Bank our mission is to be the preferred, locally owned bank committed to providing exceptional service to achieve long lasting customer relationships. The Union State Bank has been serving the banking needs of our community since 1911, when the Farmers and Merchants State Bank was formed in Kewaunee, Wisconsin. The Bank’s slogan was "A Bank of the People, By the People and For the People - A Bank For All The People," and invited the community "if you are not a customer, become one, and we assure you that your interests will be protected in every legitimate manner." In 1934 the Farmers and Merchants State Bank consolidated with the Dairyman’s State Bank, which was located across the street, and the Union State Bank was formed. It was reported in the local paper that "The union of two banks is particularly for the benefit of depositors. All the experience, ability and training gained through many years of banking service is combined here primarily for your protection. The confidence that has been cultivated over past years is now being strengthened." We have continued to grow through the years, and slogans used include "Union State Bank, where rail and water meet" and "Union State Bank, the bank and a half, we give you our all and then some." We currently have four locations. We have two offices located in Kewaunee, Wisconsin which is along the shores of Lake Michigan, approximately 20 miles east of Green Bay. We also have an office in Green Bay, Wisconsin and an office in Two Rivers, Wisconsin. Our main office is located at 223 Ellis Street in Kewaunee. Our second Kewaunee location was established in 1996 and is in the Piggly Wiggly grocery store. Our Green Bay office was established in 1987 and in September of 1999 we completed an addition to that location. In April 2004 we opened our office in Two Rivers. Originally situated inside the Pick 'n Save grocery store, the Two Rivers office was relocated to a brand new building at 2221 Lincoln Avenue on April 21, 2009. We have certainly grown and changed over years, but one thing remains constant - our commitment to our customers. We are proud to be the only independent bank in Kewaunee, which allows us the ability to offer a wide array of services that are designed to meet the individual needs of our customers. We offer full-service banking from an experienced, dedicated staff of full-time employees. We still believe in the "personal touch," and enjoy getting to know our customers. Even though we are a small, locally owned bank, we offer the latest in technology services, including our website and 24-hour account access via our "Union Access" line. We are proud of our long history of high-quality, personalized service, and invite you to become a customer of Union State Bank. See how "We Make the Difference" for you.

View all posts by Union State Bank →

3 Responses to Help Kids Learn Financial Skills

Pingback: UK implements financial literacy cirriculum in schools – The Wise Me/ Donny Wise
Pingback: Personal Finance Friday: Financial Literacy in America – The Wise Me/ Donny Wise
online home school says:

February 18, 2013 at 10:22 am

Thanks for the something totally new you have uncovered in your blog post.
One thing I want to comment on is that FSBO interactions are
built after some time. By bringing out yourself to the owners the
first saturday and sunday their FSBO is definitely announced,
prior to the masses begin calling on Mon, you produce a good connection.
By sending them equipment, educational materials, free records,
and forms, you become the ally. By using a personal curiosity about them and their circumstances,
you develop a solid interconnection that, most of the time, pays off as
soon as the owners opt with an agent they know and also trust – preferably you actually.