Jan Berenstain, co-author of The Berenstain Bears series of books, died at the end of last week. She was 88. (Stan Berenstain died in 2005 at age 82.) I do not know where I would have been as a parent without the Berenstain Bears to guide me through the murky waters of parenting.
Stan and Jan Berenstain were 18 when they met on their first day at art school in 1941. They married in 1946 and began to create stories that addressed children’s common concerns. The tales of Mama Bear, Papa Bear, Brother Bear and Sister Bear were inspired by the Berenstain’s own children and grandchildren. No wonder they were so good and spot on with their advice.
At last count, I had about 50 Berenstain Bears books. My girls are 18 and 20 now, but I hold on to these books for when I am a grandmother. Read the rest of this entry »
Suze Orman – thank you. Your prepaid card is a good thing for the millions of unbanked adults out there who have no other palatable financial options. Your fee is low and you give them an option to only using cash, and having to pay to have checks cashed. You are also doing a good thing by getting Transunion to gather data on these prepaid cards in the hopes that one day, this data could help get these cardholders some kind of credit score that could bridge them to the traditional world of credit.
BUT, Orman claims that her prepaid card is a good way to teach kids about money. I disagree. It is not the best option for our kids. Nope, not by a long shot. Read the rest of this entry »
Parents – take note: Grandparents can be a powerful tool in the process of teaching your kids how to be smart about money.
I grew up with my grandmother who lived with us, and everything she said - I heard. My mom and dad? Well, not so much.
My grandmother had a distinct (maybe a bit unfair?) advantage over my parents and my parents were smart enough to see how powerful a resource my grandmother could be in their quest to raise me to be smart about money.
This week a teacher in North Dakota reached out to me regarding a question that was raised in her classroom about how someone builds a credit rating if they don’t apply/use a credit card. A great question that not only teens have, but also many adults. Here’s my response:
Establishing credit does not take a long time- so there is no real emergency to do so.
More important is to get it right - to use it wisely and understand it’s purpose and role in your life. My suggested approach would be for students (teens) to get a checking account and tie a debit card to the account. Manage that wisely for a period of time - don’t spend more than you have. (That will not establish credit - but it will give you some practice managing cash flow - and learning to live within your means.) Next would be to apply for a student credit card with a $500 limit and manage that wisely. Choose the card wisely - all cards are not equal. Increase your limit when you NEED to only for things you NEED.
This will help you and your students.
I thought the following story from The Wall Street Journal might be of interest as well:
Holiday money mistakes are a great teachable moment for kids. It’s easy to break the bank during the holiday season. Talk openly with your kids - always in an age-appropriate way - about gift-giving this past season and discuss options to make sure next year’s spending stays within budget.
Discuss starting a holiday savings account now where money is deposited each month in preparation for the end of year spending. Consider layaway options for bigger gifts. Plan for homemade gifts. Maybe a summer garden will provide the family with the makings of some homemade jam to gift next December. And don’t forget to think about the opportunities to earn some extra cash this summer when school is out. A good old-fashioned lemonade stand could help make a nice contribution to the holiday savings account.
Since 2007, Money Savvy Generation Foundation along with Dr. Mark Schug, PhD of Economics and Financial Literacy Consultant, and the Brewers Community Foundation have trained third grade teachers in the Milwaukee Public Schools so they could teach their students the basics of personal finance.
Each year the program is closed with a visit from the Milwaukee Brewers player that helped fund the program. The player’s message? Save and invest for the day when you cannot rely on your talent to make money. Kids love the visit and really listen when Brewers players come to their schools and teach!
The program was created to help teachers feel comfortable teaching their elementary students basic financial literacy skills in the classroom with the Money Savvy Kids curriculum. Since that pilot year, through this program nearly 1,500 elementary students in Milwaukee have been equipped with the life skills training to help them make informed money decisions as they grow.
An additional benefit to working with the teachers in training sessions at the excellent location of Miller Park – courtesy of the Brewers Community Foundation - has been the positive impact the program has had on the participating teachers. Some were a bit skeptical at the start that the program really would work for their classrooms. But after completing the training, they too started putting some of the lessons into action in their own lives.
We are all proud of this program we started over four years ago - and we are thrilled that the Wisconsin Governor’s Council on Financial Literacy has recognized the Brewers Community Foundation for this program with a Wisconsin Financial Literacy Award. Here’s the link to the announcement:
Congratulations to the Brewers Community Foundation - and thanks for helping make financial literacy education available for so many Milwaukee students!
Over 5 years ago I met Chicago City Treasurer Stephanie Neely when we both volunteered as Principals for a Day at a south side elementary school in Chicago. I gave her a Money Savvy Pig so she could give it to her then 4-year-old son so they had something visual at home to help them talk about money. Over the holidays, the Treasurer shared her story with the Chicago Examiner of the impact the Money Savvy Pig has had on her son becoming a “determined saver”. Here’s a link to the article: http://www.examiner.com/city-hall-in-chicago/federal-program-teaches-youth-about-money
Since that first meeting, Treasurer Neely has become a wonderful partner and advocate to help reach young Chicago Public School students with lessons of financial literacy. With the Treasurer, through The Money Savvy Generation Foundation, we created a truly unique and rewarding program called the Financial Education Initiative for Students and Families. To see a video of the impact from the 2011 program, click below.
Thank you, Treasurer Neely, for sharing the Money Savvy Pig with your son - and for making financial literacy a priority in Chicago. Because of you, and the other program supporters, over 200,000 Chicago Public School elementary students have learned about the basics of personal finance over the last few years. Lessons that will last a lifetime. Thank you!
It’s that time of year again. The holidays are done and the New Year’s headache is cured. Or is it? Now we wait for the end-of-the-year bills to arrive.
If you did not overspend, let your kids share in the victory.
Talk as a family about how you stayed within your budget. Did you make a list of all those you wanted to remember and take that list with you to the mall each and every time you shopped? Did you place a dollar amount next to the name and make sure you did not exceed that amount? Did you discuss what you had to “give” to gift-giving before you went out and shopped? Did you come up with ideas that would replace a purchased gift – like baking or a gift of time or a talent?
Leverage your “purchase fatigue” and your family’s contentment as you think about next year. Read the rest of this entry »
Okay, it does cost time and some money, but baking has long been a tradition for gifting at this time of the year for our family. I have a long list of kids that wait on my chocolate chip banana bread. (Email me at susan@msgen.com if you’d like the recipe; happy to share.) Attach the recipe to the baked goods and you are good to go!
Set a great example by starting something this year that your kids (or spouse) have been after you to do. Lose weight? Exercise? Cook more meals at home? Eat out more? Read more?
If you have a habit that is stressing out your kids – not to mention your own health – make a gift of quitting, tapering, changing or getting some kind of help that gives them peace. Show them how you plan to tackle the issue, and enlist their help.
Jan Berenstain, co-author of The Berenstain Bears series of books, died at the end of last week. She was 88. (Stan Berenstain died in 2005 at age 82.) I do not know where I would have been as a parent without the Berenstain Bears to guide me through the murky waters of parenting.
It’s that time of year again. The holidays are done and the New Year’s headache is cured. Or is it? Now we wait for the end-of-the-year bills to arrive.
Okay, it does cost time and some money, but baking has long been a tradition for gifting at this time of the year for our family. I have a long list of kids that wait on my chocolate chip banana bread. (Email me at 
Set a great example by starting something this year that your kids (or spouse) have been after you to do. Lose weight? Exercise? Cook more meals at home? Eat out more? Read more?
