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three-month period would cost an extra R110 at the    more opportunities to invest are
        current price. Comparative shopping is also an excellent   opened up. This section is designed
        technique to get kids to practise their mental arithmetic.  to teach the kids the value of long-
                                                              term investing and it also makes them
        Examining the family’s monthly consumption of         aware of what the risks might be.
        electricity, gas and water, and discussing how the
        family can save on these utilities, is another useful   OTHER ONLINE OPTIONS
        exercise. Looking into whether it would be better to   If you’re not sure about committing
        buy a vehicle on credit vs buying it outright, debating   to an entire series of the MoneyTime
        whether vehicle hire would be an option or merely using   SA modules, here are some YouTube
        Uber for the odd occasion – these are all useful ways   video channels you can try:
        to get kids more in touch with the realities of life.  • Learning Mole
                                                              • Easy Peasy Finance
        BOOKS AND ONLINE COURSES                              • Smart Kidz Learning
        There are various books on the market that could give you   • The Rich Dad Channel
        some guidance as a parent, such as Finance 101 for Kids,   • TEDx Talks
        Teaching Kids about Money, Money Smart Children and Make
        Your Kid a Money Genius (all available from Takealot.com),   CHANGES IN ASPIRATIONS
        but sharing that information with kids may be a challenge.  Although we can all accept that what one
                                                              generation prioritises is not necessarily
        The other option is to have them go online.           something that will even be relevant
        MoneyTime SA (www.moneytimekids.co.za) offers a financial   for future generations, if the crisis of the
        literacy programme for tweens and teens aged 10 – 14 years. It’s   pandemic has taught us nothing else,
        an online course that does the teaching for you – which is great   we can appreciate that financial stability
        for this generation because they hate being told what to do.  is imperative if we want to live healthy,
                                                              happy and relatively stress-free lives.
        This course allows kids to work through the programme
        independently and there are quizzes and tests that earn   Many school leavers, however, are
        them virtual money once they have completed the modules   questioning the aspirations of owning a
        and answered the questions – so much better than being   property, driving a fancy car, embarking
        paid for doing chores! Their earnings go into a ‘Current’   on a high profile (and often very
        account and they can choose to spend, save, invest or opt   demanding) career – and maybe even
        to donate a percentage of their virtual wealth to charities.  whether they want to have kids or not.
                                                              Some place more emphasis on having
        Adding another dimension to their financial literacy journey   more freedom to do what makes them
        is the link between career choices and earning potential.   happy, opting for a more experiential
        Each child starts as a gardener. They can work their way   lifestyle, rather than accumulating a
        up to a better-paying occupation by investing in further   lot of material possessions that will
        education. For each position on the pay scale, there’s a cost   undoubtedly weigh them down. But
        to achieve a better qualification, but the trade-off is that   even this option must surely involve
        each time a module is completed at the higher level, they   some kind of financial stability.
        are paid more. This establishes the important connection
        between seeing education as an investment, and a route   The bottom line is that it’s great to be ‘in
        to earning more income by becoming better qualified.  the moment’, spending without a care in
                                                              the world to achieve that ‘feel good’ factor,
        NET WEALTH                                            but adding a long-term component to
        The MoneyTime SA course also shows that earning money   their outlook on life could lead to some
        by working (to complete the modules) is not the only way   ‘sensational moments’ further down the
        to increase one’s net worth. Earning interest on savings and   line, if your kids are conversant with all
        getting a return on investments are essential ingredients   the right strategies to make the best of
        to achieving growth. As they complete more modules,   the financial resources at their disposal.
         “We need to drive a savings culture to break the cycle of inter-generational debt”

                                         Prem Govender, South African Savings Institute

        References: https://savingsinstitute.co.za/,  https://moneytimekids.co.za/,  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One-child_policy,   IMAGE BY STEVE BUISSINNE
        https://www.reuters.com/article/us-southkorea-fertility-rate-idUSKBN2AO0UH

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