When you are young, learning is done through play. You learn that you have to share new toys with your friends. You learn about following the rules when you learn instructions for a new board game. Perhaps most importantly, as kids we learn about success and failure through games. Dr. David Dockterman, an adjunct Lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the Chief Architect of Learning Sciences at Scholastic Education posted an article on Scholastic’s On Our Mind (OOM) Blog about a year ago. In this blog he discusses how games help kids learn through failure.
“One of the reasons video games are so compelling is that you fail a bunch of times before you “win.” Without the struggle there’s little satisfaction. You try, find out right away that you failed, adjust and repeat the process likely several more times. And when you finally figure it out, it feels pretty good.”
Through games and play, kids can start to learn the basics of money management—and fail a couple of times before they start managing their money in their own lives. It also opens up a place for conversation about money choices that wouldn’t necessarily happen otherwise. If you’re looking for a money management game to play with your kids, check out these ideas:
- If you’re kids are really young, try this DIY game. Plaster self-adhesive magnets to the back of a penny, nickel, dime, and quarter, and put those on your refrigerator. When your child asks for a juice box, tell them to pay you with a quarter from the fridge. This will teach them about coins—which one is which—and also about the concept of “paying you.”
- Sorting and Saving. Kids love sorting, so give them your coin stash and have them sort. Write the numbers 1, 5, 10, and 25 inside four cupcake liners and have them place the appropriate coins in each tin. Then ask them to count how much money is in each tin! Trust me, they’ll like it! You could even time them to see how fast they can do it.
- Monopoly—For an older child, dust off your game of Monopoly. This one will teach your kids about bigger concepts like property, mortgage, collecting rent, and the consequences of running out of money. It should open up some great conversation for you!
- The Game of Life—This one teaches bigger concepts and allows kids to wonder about how their education will affect their income, how losing a job affects your kids, and the impact of taxes and debt, to name a few.
Games are also fun for adults. brightpeak strongly believes in the power of edutainment, so we have created an educational gathering for adults that teaches about the power of wise money choices and the risks that you might run into over the course of your life. What games do you and your family play that teach about money concepts?
Written by Kayla Johnson
This blog post is from the Author's perspective and doesn't speak for brightpeak financial. Contact brightpeak if you want to know more about brightpeak products, and keep in mind that they are not available in all states and there are some limitations (some exclusions and restrictions may apply).
