Easter Holidays: 4 fun activites to teach your kids about money

Most people’s relationship with money is set by the age of 7 years old, so It’s never too early to start learning good financial habits.

With the Easter School holidays in full swing, here’s a round up of fun activities to help you understand finances and make smart money decisions.

1. Create a cafe at home
Setting up a play cafe at home is a simple and fun way to help children learn about money.

Make a list of all of the snacks and treats in your home, including fruit, juice cartons, crisps, sweets or even pastries.

Give each one a price, which you can set based on your child’s understanding of money. For example, for those new to the idea of cash, starting off with smaller sums like 1p-10p might help.

Next, give your child a budget that they can use to purchase items from the cafe when they want a snack.

This helps develop their money management and budgeting skills.

If you have time, you can create your own currency and money at home instead of using real cash.

2. Play mini supermarket sweep
If you’re heading to the supermarket or convenience store over the school holidays, getting your kids involved with the process can help them build money confidence.

For example, they could help to create a shopping list and set a budget for the shop.

While walking around the store, they can also help to spot good deals and compare prices too.

It’s also possible to get them involved if you prefer to order your shopping online. For instance, using food price comparison websites to see who offers the cheapest items.

Or looking for discount codes online and calculating how much they could help you save.

3. Try a pocket money savings challenge
Savings challenges are a great activity to help children understand the steps involved in hitting a financial goal. For example, if they want a certain toy, game or virtual currency like Robux.

Take some time to create a simple plan which shows how much they need to put away to achieve their goal.

They can add a touch of creativity and add their own designs or images to the plan.

Next, break down how much of their pocket money they’ll need to save each day or week to hit the goal.

You can also add a bonus if they hit their targets to encourage them to save more.

The great thing about this challenge is that you can create your own currency too. So you could substitute pocket money with a DIY token.

Once they’ve earned enough tokens, you can give the cash equivalent or make the purchase on their behalf.

4. Open a Children’s Savings Account or JISA
Parents and legal guardians can open a child’s savings account or Junior ISA to help them start putting money away.

If your child is old enough to understand how they work, involving them in the process of depositing money into the account and monitoring how it performs will help build their financial confidence.

Opting for a Junior Stocks and Shares ISA also allows them to understand how investing works and see their money begin to grow over time.

You don’t need a lot to get started but creating the habit of frequent deposits into the account will help build good long-term habits for the future.

For more tips, check out our podcast episode Smart Money Habits Every Child Needs to Learn.