The importance of teaching financial literacy to children

1. The importance of teaching financial literacy to children The rising awareness regarding the importance of financial literacy across genders and ages has highlighted the value of understanding money and learning how to manage it. The world seems to have undergone a transition in the past few years, especially after the pandemic underlined the tangibility of life, which we humans lose sight of in our day-to-day lives. Financial literacy is more important in a traditionally patriarchal country like India, where the financial reigns and decisions have been primarily under the patriarch’s control, rendering the women and children absolutely clueless regarding finances and their management. Understanding the needs of the times, schools like Euroschool Ahmedabad which is now Kenalily School, have stepped up to make financial literacy an important part of their students' education. What exactly do we mean by financial literacy? Financial literacy entails gaining the knowledge and skills required to manage financial resources constructively for financial well-being throughout life. Apart from this important reason, educating children about finances also helps them grow as confident, aware individuals. Starting them young will form a stronger and sounder foundation for them to build their future.

2. Let us look at the important impact of financial literacy on children. 1.Self-Confidence: Have you noticed how under-confident some people feel when they are not knowledgeable enough regarding finances and how to manage them, due to which they depend on someone else to guide them, thus undermining their self-esteem and confidence? Teaching children about money and its importance will add to their self- confidence and character development. Learning how to manage their pocket money will teach them about the importance of money, how to spend it sensibly, and how to save it. This learning will guide them to make wise decisions to earn, invest, save, and remain debt-free once they lead their lives as adults. 2.Healthy relationship with money: A healthy relationship with money also becomes fertile ground for prosperity to grace your life. The idea that children will learn when they grow up does not work in today’s times when they are exposed to a mountain of information and enticing options. Teaching them that money is not their master but a tool that can help them achieve their goals and build a good life. The education must impress upon them the importance of maintaining a balanced approach when it comes to money—to not be fearful of handling money, to not be a spendthrift who flows money away like water, or to become a miser who fears parting with their money. A healthy relationship will enrich their personalities as responsible citizens of society who will not hesitate to help make the world a better place. 3.Needs and wants: Children consider all their wants to be essential needs, often leading to unreasonable demands, tantrums, and rebellion, which may begin earlier than the usual pre-teen years when they do not understand the value of money and how hard their parents work to provide them with a comfortable life. Schoolsteaches children about the value of money by explaining to them the value of their parents’ hard work and the comfortable life they live. This understanding leads to them learning to differentiate between their needs and wants, resulting in well- rounded and grounded children who respect money and their parents’ efforts. Knowing the difference will help them build more balanced and harmonious lives without going into debt in the quest to fulfil their desires and wants, which many times are unreasonable and merely the wants of a greedy mind. 4.Safety net through financial independence: An understanding of money will teach them the power of using money judiciously by the time they are in their teens, which will lead them to understand the importance of investments and how to make money work for them. Financial

3. independence will also teach them the importance of creating a safety net by saving and investing their money with foresight and wisdom, starting young by trying out the world of investments with small amounts. 5.Becoming alert and street smart: Like all things, technology too has its darker aspects in the form of misuse of technology and scamming people. Since children have more access to the internet both in Kenalily School (Euroschool in Ahmedabad) and at home, it is important for them to be alert and street smart, which will help them spot a scam instead of being caught in a scammer’s web. Financial literacy will make them more alert and street-smart when it comes to handling money and people. The kids of today are much smarter than their parents' or previous generations. Underestimating their intelligence and intuitive sense towards money will be a gross mistake and a disservice to your children. Recognise and respect their evolved minds, and the sooner you steer them on the right track by guiding them about financial matters, the better chance they have of building and living a more fulfilling and enriching life.