We’ve already written a few blogs on how to discuss money with kids and today’s blog is a new variation on that very subject.
As we are all well aware as adults, prices are going up. Most notably, this increase is rearing its ugly head through the price of gas. No, we’re not going to use today’s blog to complain about the fact that our world is becoming more expensive. Instead, we want to help you figure out the best way to address this financial swing with the youngest and most inquisitive minds in your household, your children.
Read on for our three tips on talking to your child about prices going up.
1. Show Them
Actions speak louder than words. One of the best ways to discuss the price increases with your child is by showing them firsthand. Take them on two separate trips to the grocery store separated by a few weeks or a month. Sit your child down and show them two grocery store fliers, one from a few months ago and a more current one. Exemplify the price increases through actual price increases by identifying a few products that have stayed the same in price over time and showcasing a few that have risen in price over time. This is sure to spark your child’s curiosity about this phenomenon and set the stage for you and your child to talk about it further.
2. Explain Things To Them
Further to showing your child price increases firsthand, a good strategy for talking to them about our present reality is by sitting them down and explaining it to them as you would for your teenager or as you would if you were having a conversation with your spouse/partner. Of course, you wouldn’t use the same language with your child as you would with your spouse but take some time to find a way to explain that gas prices going up has some to do with the war in Ukraine and some to do with our slow shift out of a pandemic, among other things. Your child might be young, but there is no reason that should prevent you from explaining real-life things to them and this is no different.
3. Encourage Them To Ask Questions/Answer Their Questions
Part of allowing your child to understand the real world in front of them is encouraging them to ask questions and answering the ones they do bring you. Accordingly, a good way to talk to your child about our increasing prices is to encourage them to question what they don’t understand so that you can help them further their understanding about how money works. We just talked about why it is important to explain things to them clearly but you may not always remember what to discuss with them so periodically encouraging them to ask questions about the world around them generally – but, in this case, specific to why and how and when prices may move – is a good way to ensure that you cover anything they might want to know as it relates to financial life.
We hope that today’s post gives you a foundation for the conversations you are already having or the ones you are about to have with your child about why prices around us are rising. We understand that this blog might not be able to give you all the answers but we do believe that comprehending price increases is a crucial part of your child’s developing understanding as it relates to personal finance so we hope that this blog helps kick-start that for them.
Going beyond a kick-start, though, we at Explorer Hop want to help your child beyond just words on a page and that is why we also offer globally-acclaimed personal finance programs for children in grades one through twelve. Our programs cover topics ranging from the basics and history of money to the stock market and global finance depending on your child’s age, so we encourage you to check out our courses and classes today to sign your child up as soon as possible.
Get the young mind in your household started on their journey to understanding personal finance today because we know that the best asset your child has is time and an earlier start towards financial literacy today will pay great dividends in the future!