April is Financial Literacy Month: Teach your kids the basics.

By education and research, most children learn how to excel at the important things in life. Education and practice are the two most essential ingredients. Nevertheless, most children seek instruction and experience with managing their money across the span of one's life.

In December of 2019, The National Financial Educators Council (NFEC) asked nearly 7,000 teenagers and young adults (ages 15-18) across the United States to respond to a test measuring their current personal monetary knowledge. This 30-question quiz evaluated their capacity to earn, save, and multiply wealth. According to the results of the survey, the collection's average financial literacy level was 64.9.

Thanks to greater awareness, high school students in 21 states must now take financial literacy courses to take part in graduation. When young people learn to manage money, they're given a solid foundation that will allow them to realize their dreams.

April is Financial Literacy Month

The Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy decided to designate April 2000 as Financial Literacy Month. During this time, organizations celebrate and contribute to initiatives designed to promote financial literacy, especially for young people, as well as to enhance adequacy of personal finance for all.

Why is financial literacy important?

Financial literacy is key to learning how to save money, earn, borrow, invest, and protect your finances. It is also key to establishing strong financial habits that improve the quality of your financial decisions over time.

Now, more than ever

At least 72% of college students note stress about personal finance and the ongoing worldwide health crisis covid-19 may place additional financial strain on a lot of minors. Now more than ever, they need support and guidance to learn how they can manage through it financially.

• John DoSomething.org is doing exactly that. The largest organization for young people and social change launched "Would You Rather?", a nationwide financial literacy campaign that teaches young people how to make and save money, while social distancing during COVID-19.
• By putting a twist on the classic Would You Rather? game, young people are enticed to answer questions on financial topics. Riddles like Would you rather... a) share a cellphone with your grandma? or b) share a bedroom with your former partner? (A) are acceptable to answering.
• After you have finished every question, test-takers receive a personal finance tip along with comprehensive personal finance guides. Those quizzes are also available for you.

Let the (financial literacy) games begin.

• Gamification has become a renowned and lucrative way to introduce critical thought and skills to learners of all ages. As an example, financial education can be challenging if taught in a different way. Gamification can be the solution.
• Teach your nieces and nephews age-appropriate financial literacy lessons that will aid them in all sorts of situations later on.

Grades K-5

You can begin instructing your younger kids about money by instructing the basic concepts. Here are some engaging suggestions for money games you can continue to play with them as they grow older.

• Learning Coins : Learning Coins provided by ABCYa provides children with an introduction to what all the different coins is, how to recognize them, and what they're worth.
• Also from ABCya, Money Bingo aids kids apply their coin understanding, along with math skills, to fill a virtual bingo card.
• Shark School: Once you've mastered those first two games, ABCYa has one more financial literacy game for students who are at a higher level. Shark School lets you compete against other children to see who can make the right move the fastest.
• Escape from Barter Island - Escape from Barter Island teaches kids why we use currency, compared to bartering. It demonstrates how bartering is inferior to using currency. This one does require some reading, so you may need to take some assistance with it if needed.
• Dolphin Feed - From the U.S. Mint, Dollar Dive is a cross between Space Invaders and Dolphin Feed - your character has to "catch" coins as they fly above to make enough money to move forward.

Grades 5-8

• Visa’s Practical Money initiative combines financial literacy with the world's most popular sport (for those who like soccer, they have the option to participate as well).
• Hot Shot Business takes children to Opportunity City and lets them run a popular local business with all the obstacles and benefits of such a business.

Thrive and Shine - Thrive and Shine is a game from Mind Blown Labs where players choose a character and profession and then develop and spend money over the course of the action based on the challenges that arise. It features concepts such as emergency funds, investments, and taxes.

Middle and high school students: Developed for students grades four through seven, this online video game offers kids the opportunity to learn about vital personal finance skills as they play against one another and see how much money they are able to rescue or lend others through 16 Missions.

High school and beyond

Get a Life - Get a Life lets students choose a career and then create a budget based on a predetermined annual salary.

• Player chooses among the earliest jobs for the youngest adults available at the time, as well as a set initial revenue, and offers to enter a more specialized field. As they move through an increasing range of levels of education and employment, they learn about the different methods by which adults manage their personal finances, like saving, donating, and investing.
• The game The Stock Market Game — Learn to play the stock market without risk. Students can learn how to allocate resources, make decisions, and avoid the hazards that beset investors.
• CEF's Gen i Revolution provides players with various challenges, which help players work through a challenging financial ordeal.
• Invest Quest - Modeled after a game, Invest Quest helps older students learn basic financial principles through gaming.

We can't forget the grown-ups

Financial literacy learning isn't just for kids. We "kids at heart" could use a refresher on topics like managing debt, using credit cards, and protecting our identity. We've rounded up a few good places to get you started on your extra-curricular education.

CBNC offers this 8-week course to financial freedom for free. That's not even the best part: It's the educational investment. All you have to do is click on a link and get immediate access. Talk about barely having to lift a finger.

Smart About Money's Money Basics courses are designed to encourage you to build a healthy fiscal foundation for the remainder of your personal finance journey. Each course takes 45 minutes to complete and includes a valuable set of tools and resources including worksheets, calculators, and quizzes.

Financial literacy in your local community

Financial institutions are big supporters of financial literacy in their communities. Community banks and credit unions are particularly well-positioned to step in and serve the vulnerable (underbanked, underserved, and disenfranchised) among us. Keep an eye out for Financial Independence Education Foundation-hosted contests, workshops, school deposit days, fairs, and other programs that seek to improve financial education.

How are you participating in Financial Literacy Month this April?

If you have something special planned for this learning month, invite us to join. Did you come up with a compelling game for your kids? Are you enrolled in a personal finance course? Please drop us a line at financeinfoguide.com or we can simply be 'natural as I slime the DMs' as the kids say.