10 Basic Money Questions For Kids

By Sunny Istar Lee, Certified Financial Coach

“Money to me is the way of life. If we don’t have money, we can’t buy anything. Then, our financial plan would be ruined and we wouldn’t have enough money to take care of ourselves later.”

This was taken from an essay written by my son Jason, who was eight years old at the time. In his essay, Jason continued, “The meaning of money for me is like the key to living a successful life. If you have a lot of money now, you should save it, not spend it all. Some people say spend spend spend. No! You should save even though you don’t get an item you want right now!”

It was part of a project called “The Finance Book Project,” one of many reward projects I’ve created and used for them since he and his brother were in kindergarten. This project mainly focused on reading and writing about personal finance, and both boys worked diligently day in and day out. They learned the basics of finance through playing money games and writing essays each week.

Do you know what leads to good answers? Good questions! If you want to know what’s going on in your children’s mind about money, work, and success in life, ask them questions that make them think and let them freely express their thoughts verbally and also in writing. They will tell you the most amazing things!

These are the 10 basic money questions that I asked my kids when they were little.

1o BASIC MONEY QUESTIONS TO ASK TO YOUR CHILDREN

1.  What is money?
2.  What does saving money mean?
3.  Why is saving money early important?
4.  How can you make money from home?
5.  How can you manage your money if you get paid to do household chores?
6.  If you received money from your parents, how would you like to spend it?
7.  Where else can you make money other than at home?
8.  What would you like to do if you had a million dollars right now?
9.  Do you want to go to college? How will you save money for college?
10.  What does it mean to invest money for your future?

The list could go on! Create your own questions that are perfect for your children. With a little imagination, you can make it fun and memorable! Writing an essay about personal finance can make learning interesting and also teach them practical life skills.

If you haven’t done this kind of fun inquiry with your kids before, you will be astonished to find out how they think; it’s like they are in an unlimited possibility zone. It can make you laugh and cry at the same time.