Sowing the Seeds of Smart Spending: Cultivating Financial Wisdom in the Next Generation

The European Union institutions, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), also draw attention to the problem of financial literacy, which emphasize that this skill should be considered one of the most important priorities in the field of education. The World Economic Forum even equates financial literacy with such basic literacy skills as reading or writing.

Head of Swedbank’s Finance Institute Jūratė Cvilikienė notes that the development of financial literacy is a long-term process, so there is no clear limit when to start learning it: “Simple things can be explained from a young age, and when children cross the threshold of school, they can be introduced to smart options, such as use them correctly and allow yourself to make decisions on how to spend and save money, bearing in mind that you may have to come back to the topic more than once, why you can’t spend all the money on the thing you want”.

According to her, various tools can be used, and one of the most effective methods is learning together. A variety of task books can be used for this, in which the information presented in a playful way is understandable for children and young people of all ages.

“We have published several publications that help in learning financial literacy. From their circulation, we see great interest, especially among the youngest age group of children. This allows us to assume that parents are taking this topic more and more seriously, so we, observing such an influx, are looking for new ways to talk about it,” the financial expert shares.

The popular children’s writer Tomas Dirgėla could follow her, who, although he considers himself a great spender of money, says that it is necessary to talk to children about money: “For example, in my childhood there was either very little or no such talk at all. That’s why I became a moneylender and I’m happy if I manage to refrain from unnecessary moneylending.”

How to start developing financial literacy?

According to financial experts, children learn from our example, so the way we talk about money and the way we spend it is likely to be reflected in our children’s behavior. Financial literacy lessons can be started through games, using real situations or their simulations. You can help when a child or young person has a clear goal – they want to buy a new toy or a necessary item, or perhaps go on a trip. Having a specific goal helps you assess how much money you need, how long it will take to save, and even find ways to save faster.

“If we tell a child that we can’t afford it, we don’t have money, the child may feel like he’s at a dead end and won’t understand how to deal with it. But if we say – let’s calculate how much time we could save for the desired item, we will invite them to think together about the nearest priorities, this will empower the child and show the direction”, says J. Cvilikienė.

With the help of practical advice, you can help your child to better understand money and its value. You should start with such simple tasks as, for example, calculating how much return is left from the available amount and encourage you to put it in a savings account or invest.

Financial education tasks can also be used for learning – specific solutions to situations can help both children and parents learn to make appropriate decisions.

Talking about money can be done casually

Last December, T. Dirgėla, who writes for children, presented his new program – stand up‘ą “How to Spend More” for both kids and their parents. When asked how such an idea was born, he shared that after one of the book presentations, a child who came up said that it was as funny as a show.

It wouldn’t be fun to share saving or financial literacy tips yourself, because spending money is much better.

“I thought that it was necessary to make an inverse version, like a parody, encouraging people not to save, but to spend as much as possible, so that the money remains as little as possible and there is no headache, where to put the money and what to do with it,” laughs T. Dirgėla.

In this one stand up‘e the creator gathered all his experience from his early childhood, when, after earning a lita or two, he immediately went to the bus station kiosks in Palanga, where he lived at the time, to look for something to buy. They say, he was much calmer when he didn’t have a penny left. As an adult, this method is no longer suitable, so at least you can laugh at it.

The writer’s next appearance is already on October 24. in the largest remote lesson “Mokonomika”.

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