Schools Fall Short on Teaching Financial Literacy — Here's 3 Ways Parents Can Raise Future Entrepreneurs

I was fortunate to beryllium exposed to the value of the entrepreneurial spirit from a young age. Though I had nary thought what an entrepreneur was aliases what they did, I was influenced by my schoolteacher parents, who progressive my relative and maine successful our family's broadside hustle: renovating homes.

My parents came from humble backgrounds. My mother was bum for portion of her childhood, and my begetter was an migrant who came from fewer resources. When they were married, a location represented overmuch much than a spot to live. It was information and security.

Almost each summertime increasing up, we would move into a caller location that met the period of being the worst location connected a bully street, pinch the extremity of renovating and updating it earlier the commencement of the schoolhouse year.

To my relative and I, it seemed for illustration a awesome escapade to move into a caller location each summertime and thief our parents scrape paint, soil floors and bent wallpaper. We didn't recognize astatine the clip that our parents were helping the family unrecorded much comfortably and school america astir the importance of difficult work and channeling our entrepreneurial drive.

Today, arsenic a genitor of 3 young boys, I'm besides trying to foster an early knowing of financial literacy, business concepts and entrepreneurism successful my kids. Not conscionable because I want my children to beryllium financially unafraid arsenic adults but besides because I cognize having that entrepreneurial thrust is simply a awesome instauration for immoderate they prosecute arsenic they get older.

My oldest is simply a budding chickenhearted husbandman astatine the property of seven. My family lives successful the country, and he wanted to effort raising chickens and trading their eggs to our neighbors.

As basal arsenic it sounds, it's go a nosy measurement for him to study responsibilities for illustration feeding the chickens and cleaning their coop while being exposed to the concepts of buying and trading products. It's nosy for him, but it's besides helping to ingrain a level of financial literacy, conscionable arsenic reference to him arsenic a babe and toddler contributed to his accepted literacy.

While immoderate effort has been made successful caller years to merge financial literacy into simple and precocious schoolhouse curriculums, location remains a important spread successful educating children and younker astir individual finances, business principles and entrepreneurship.

According to a 2024 report by The National Financial Educators Council, not 1 American authorities meets moreover the basal standards for educating students successful financial literacy, stating: "While standards for K-12 acquisition person been reformed, nary authorities applies those aforesaid standards for rigor, instruction time, aliases coach mentation to its financial literacy requirements. Not a azygous authorities prioritizes financial acquisition arsenic a halfway taxable area."

The study besides notes that this nonaccomplishment to reside a captious facet of basal acquisition has consequences: "Only 57% of Americans are financially literate, ranking the state 14th successful the world connected that metric; and 4 retired of 5 U.S. adults opportunity they were ne'er fixed an opportunity to study astir individual finance."

Those numbers tin lead to highly mediocre financial decisions for illustration taking connected too overmuch debt, entering into high-interest loans that tin ne'er beryllium paid off, and, successful the astir utmost cases, bankruptcies, which rose 16% successful June 2024 compared to 2023.

Just because schools aren't measuring up connected school financial literacy, location are steps parents tin return to thief amended the entrepreneurs of the future.

Related: How to Raise Entrepreneurial Minded Kids

1. Give your ain lessons connected financial literacy astatine home

From the old-fashioned piggy slope to a basal savings relationship to creating a budget to bargain a prized artifact pinch a play allowance, location are tons of ways to get kids reasoning astir really money works.

Parents often awkward distant from discussing finances pinch their kids, which tin do them a disservice. You don't request to talk your 401k, but moreover conscionable getting them to find the cheaper peanut food astatine the market shop aliases showing them really your car costs useful tin spell a agelong measurement toward establishing a instauration for knowing finances.

2. Encourage entrepreneurial reading

There are dozens of awesome books you tin springiness aliases publication to your kid to thief thatch basicfinancial literacy lessonsy. One of my sons' favorites is the Lawn Boy bid by Gary Paulsen, astir a 12-year-old who uses his grandfather's riding mower to create a vicinity section attraction empire 1 summer. Other awesome options see Investing for Kids: From Piggy Banks to Portfolios, Bunny Money by Rosemary Wells, aliases The Berenstain Bears' Dollars and Sense.

Related: These Are the 3 Things That Make Daymond John Want to Give You Money

3. Help your kid commencement a mini business

Most of america retrieve trying to waste lemonade from a array connected the beforehand section astatine immoderate constituent during our childhood, aliases we had enterprising friends who tried it. While group whitethorn beryllium little inclined to bargain nutrient aliases portion from strangers these days, kids tin connection to mow neighbors' lawns, rake leaves, shovel snowfall – aliases yes, moreover commencement a chickenhearted coop.

Making signs and flyers to beforehand their business is simply a awesome measurement to thatch kids astir marketing, mounting prices successful statement pinch demand, interacting pinch "customers," and exchanging services for cash.

Related: 4 Pillars for Raising Entrepreneurial Children

While immoderate parents consciousness finances and business are not a taxable for kids, I judge offering basic, age-appropriate lessons to kids tin person a immense effect arsenic they turn up.

Just for illustration exposing them to a 2nd connection from a young property tin create connection pathways that make learning languages easier later successful life, the aforesaid accuracy holds existent for educating children connected the basics of economics and business.