Here's something that might surprise you: you should start teaching your kids about money around age three. Yes, three. Not when they're begging for the latest gaming console at ten, or when they're filling out college applications at seventeen. By age three, children can already grasp basic concepts like waiting, choosing, and the idea that things cost money. Money habits form early, which means if you're waiting until your kid can do long division to start talking about dollars and cents, you're already years behind the curve.
The good news? Teaching kids about money doesn't require a finance degree or awkward lectures about compound interest. It's actually about weaving simple, age-appropriate lessons into everyday life, starting way earlier than most parents think. The foundation you build in those early years shapes how they'll handle their first paycheck, their first credit card, and every financial decision that follows.
The Preschool Years: Ages 3–5
Your preschooler might not be ready for a stock portfolio, but they're absolutely ready to understand that money is exchanged for things they want. This is the age where you introduce physical currency and let them handle coins and bills. Take them grocery shopping and narrate your decisions: "We're choosing this cereal because it costs less," or "We need to wait until next week to buy that toy." Give them a clear jar for savings so they can literally watch their money grow.
The visual element matters enormously at this age. Young children are concrete thinkers, so abstract concepts like savings accounts don't register yet. But a jar filled with quarters? That's real magic they can understand. Start a simple routine where they might earn a small amount for age-appropriate tasks, not everyday chores like cleaning their room, but special jobs. Let them experience the frustration of wanting something they can't afford yet, and the triumph of finally having enough.
These early emotional connections to patience and delayed gratification are the foundation of every good financial habit they'll ever have. When a four-year-old learns that waiting two weeks to afford that toy train actually makes getting it feel better, they're learning a lesson most adults still struggle with.
Elementary Through Teenage Years: Ages 6–18
Once kids hit elementary school, it's time to level up. Around age six, introduce the concept of earning, saving, spending, and giving. Many families use a four-jar system for this. By age eight or nine, kids can understand opportunity cost, that choosing one thing means not choosing another. This is when you let them make purchasing mistakes with their own money. Let them blow their savings on a cheaply made toy that breaks in two days.
Middle school is the sweet spot for opening a savings account together and teaching them to track their balance. By high school, teenagers should have a debit card, understand how to budget for variable expenses, and know the basics of how credit works and why debt is dangerous.
