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NEWS RELEASE 2008
ABA Media Contact: Marquita Powell
(202) 663-5418
E-mail: mpowell@aba.com
THE MONEY TALK, FOR PARENTS AND CHILDREN
ABA Education Foundation Personal Finance Tips
WASHINGTON, Oct. 22—Money is issue number one, from the local news to The Today Show and the Oprah Winfrey Show, prompting the ABA Education Foundation to encourage parents to get on topic and have the money talk with their children.
“Children are listening when we talk about money,” explains Laura Fisher, ABA Education Foundation director. “With the economy as the new buzz word, it is the ideal time for parents to talk money with children. But parents need to do more than talk; they need to be real life examples of responsible money managers for their children.”
The ABA Education Foundation suggests parents use these guidelines to initiate a dialogue on personal finance.
· Open up a savings account at your local bank for your children and take them with you to make deposits, so they can learn how to be hands-on money managers.
· Talk openly about money with your kids. Communicate your values and experiences with money. Encourage them to ask you questions, and be prepared to answer them – even the tough ones.
· Explain the difference between needs and wants, the value in saving and budgeting and the consequences of not doing so.
· Set up a chore chart and give your children an allowance for completing their tasks. Require them to save at least a small portion each week. The three jars method, one for spending, one for saving and one for charitable contributions is a good way to impart a sense of responsibility.
· Be an example of a responsible money manager by paying bills on time, being a conscious spender and an active saver. Children tend to emulate their parents’ personal finance habits.
The ABA Education Foundation’s Money Talks newsletter is designed for parents to share with children and features 10 issues available in English and Spanish for children, tweens, teens and young adults plus a glossary of bank terminology.
For more personal finance tips, visit www.abaef.com.
The ABA Education Foundation provides financial education programs and resources that help bankers make their communities better. Nearly 69,000 bankers have taught basic finance skills to almost 3.2 million young people through participation in the Foundation’s signature programs, Teach Children to Save and Get Smart About Credit. Founded by bankers in 1925, the foundation is guided by a board of bankers and is an affiliate of the American Bankers Association. For more information, visit www.abaef.com or call 1-800-BANKERS.
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