Holiday Spending Teaches Children
By Marie HuntMommy MD Staff Writer
Could the way you celebrate the holidays teach your children how to handle money? Experts suggest that this may be true. Children learn from the model of their parents' lives, and this is true in financial decisions as well; so, whether parents or their children are aware of it or not, children may be forming their future spending habits based on how their parents spend.
The holidays make a deep, emotional impact on children, so a parent's actions during this time are especially important for a child's development. Jan Dahlin Geiger, a financial planner in Atlanta and author of “Get Your Assets in Gear! Smart Money Strategies”, says that spending too much on your children can not only be damaging to the family financially, but may teach your children to place importance on material things. She says that it is important during this season to teach your children that it is not money and gifts that express love, and the best way to do that is not overspending on their gifts. She suggests instead sharing experiences and spending time communicating the values that are important to your family.
Many families try to model good financial values during the holidays by giving to charities. Linda Leitz, a parent, financial adviser and author of “The Ultimate Parenting Map to Money Smart Kids” highly recommends giving to charity during the holiday season, being sure to not only model this for your children, but let them be involved in the process. Many Jewish families maintain the tradition of keeping a tzedakah box. "Tzedakah" is the Hebrew word for "charity," and the box is used to collect coins to be given to a good cause during Hanukkah. The Salvation Army is a Christian organization that collects change outside many stores and accepts donations of clothing and toys to give to families who are in need during the Christmas season. Giving to an organization that shares a family's values will help pass those values on to the children.
The holidays make a deep, emotional impact on children, so a parent's actions during this time are especially important for a child's development. Jan Dahlin Geiger, a financial planner in Atlanta and author of “Get Your Assets in Gear! Smart Money Strategies”, says that spending too much on your children can not only be damaging to the family financially, but may teach your children to place importance on material things. She says that it is important during this season to teach your children that it is not money and gifts that express love, and the best way to do that is not overspending on their gifts. She suggests instead sharing experiences and spending time communicating the values that are important to your family.
Many families try to model good financial values during the holidays by giving to charities. Linda Leitz, a parent, financial adviser and author of “The Ultimate Parenting Map to Money Smart Kids” highly recommends giving to charity during the holiday season, being sure to not only model this for your children, but let them be involved in the process. Many Jewish families maintain the tradition of keeping a tzedakah box. "Tzedakah" is the Hebrew word for "charity," and the box is used to collect coins to be given to a good cause during Hanukkah. The Salvation Army is a Christian organization that collects change outside many stores and accepts donations of clothing and toys to give to families who are in need during the Christmas season. Giving to an organization that shares a family's values will help pass those values on to the children.
References
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119715386439518429.html
http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071208/LIFESTYLE/712080311
http://www.kansas.com/living/family/story/244181.html
Labels: News
posted by MedRounds Publications at 9:32 PM
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