Learning practical money skills seems to be one of those things that most of us have learned through trial and error. ( Emphasis on error). I believe that more public schools are now incorporating practical financial education into their curriculum, and there are even a few relevant homeschool curricula that are worthy of consideration. However, when is a good time to insert it into our already full schedules? Maybe by playing games here and there until you buy a full program?
Visa has created some games and lesson plans free for the picking that will (in theory) teach your children and young adults the practical money skills they need to make wise money choices in the future. Addressing many age levels, it’s something that can be done for a brief time here and there as a fun learning ‘time-out’ or however you see fit, of course. I haven’t looked at the lesson plans they are offering, but I do like the variety of ages they target, because the younger they start learning this stuff the better, don’t you think?
Practical Money Skills.com is a site with a wealth of good information for everyone. There are games for all ages (over 9 or 10, probably), lesson plans for teens, financial calculators, and “Economy 101″. Well worth checking out, especially if you have teens at home.
We have placed the ‘Financial Football‘ on our site for you to try, and the rest can be found at: http://www.practicalmoneyskills.com/
