Anyone ever use financial peace jr? My girls are almost 3 and 4 so I want to start trying to get them headed in the right direction.

Would you recommend it?

I have not used it personally since I don't have kids but teaching them early in life is a wonderful idea. They will learn as much from you as they can anyone else. Monkey see, monkey do.

Until they turn into teenagers.

OMG! Don't expose them to Dave's idiocy. Teach them early to think critically and to question everything.

I love the idea of teaching them about money early. But DR teaches many of the wrong things and is just plain wrong about most things. He is good at getting people to part with their money. I suggest you look for similar educational materials from Vanguard or T. Rowe Price.

Also, teaching them math and science will build the intellectual skills they need to succeed. Even at 3 and 4 they can start learning to think critically with your guidance.

DoingHomework,

I understand you don't agree with Ramsey, but my 3 and 4 year old have no clue who he is. From what I understand all this does is help to teach them about working for money and to spend, save, and give. Surely you can't disagree with those things. Are there even any other similar products available? Or is it just better to wing it myself and teach them?

And maybe this is a ? For another thread, but for someone who is not religious and doesn't go to church, what can I have them give their little bit of money to since we don't tithe to any church?

A good book to read on that is "The Life You Can Save," by Peter Singer. He explains, using ironclad logic and evidence to back up his arguments, all the reasons why we should give to charities that save lives in developing countries, and painstakingly demolishes all the arguments put forward by people who disagree with him (e.g., charities take too much in overhead, aid money doesn't go to the people who need it most, why should I contribute to overpopulation in developing countries by saving lives, charity should begin at home, etc. etc.). It's a dangerous book to read if you want to keep your money; I quadrupled my annual giving after reading it.

Short answer to your question: give their money to Oxfam, or if you prefer, give it to a smaller charity that also works in developing countries (see http://www.givewell.org/ for ratings of different charities). This also will teach your kids that their dollars can accomplish a lot more in some countries than in others, and that truly extreme poverty is widespread in this world (by truly extreme I mean people who live on the equivalent of less than $1.25/day, adjusted for local purchasing power). You can make a huge difference in the life of someone that poor with a small donation; a similar-size donation to a poor person in the United States may make no difference in their life.

Oxfam's "Unwrapped" gift cards are a great way to make little, but tangible donations. I send those cards to my nieces every year, with donations made in their names, and they love getting them.

There's lots of worthy charities out there. Most folks are content with picking one that supports a cause that is near & dear to their heart.

Do a search online. You will find tons of materials and information for teaching kids about money. In a previous life I read a fair bit about Piaget's work on child development and learning. Dave's material is probably not anything that has any real thought put into it. It is a product he is selling. I seriously doubt it is sequenced to be effective at such a young age, especially when it says it is for ages 4-12. By FAR the best thing you can do at that age is to teach them (appropriate) MATH. Read this:

http://www.scholastic.com/resources/art ... -think-big

Teaching them how to think is most important at that age! Ask them a lot of questions. Challenge them, that kind of thing. If they see you take money out of the ATM, make sure they know it is not a money fountain..it's more like a closet that you put money in to take out later. Get them making comparisons. Give them a choice of two toys and have them explain to you why they value one over the other.

Money magazine has some good suggestions online. There are also various government publications that you can get for free. I also think that Marilyn Vos Savant is active in an organization that advocates financial literacy. I bet they have materials available.



I am an atheist. I think giving should be something that each person decides to do or not on their own. That said, we give a LOT to support groups or causes that we think do good work. At 3 and 4 maybe the best approach is to teach them generosity and sharing with other kids rather than making the concept too abstract. Perhaps you could take them shopping and have them pick out a toy to donate to Toys for Tots at Christmas time.

Anyway, these are just some ideas. I think what you are doing, teaching your kids about money, is fantastic. But I think there are much better resources out there than DR.

I'm going to read that book. We support a couple of charities but have gotten thoroughly disgusted with the incompetence of a few others that we used to support over the years. We stick mostly with groups that deal with animals or the environment and that we get involved with far beyond just writing a check.

I've been to the developing world in a few instances. My observation is that, while there is great suffering and extreme poverty in many cases, the root causes of the problems are not solvable by charities. The causes are generally either political or caused by the charities themselves. (When you decrease infant mortality you better find a way to feed all those people...when is the last time you heard a charity or NGO present a top-down plan for helping a region achieve a sustainable balance between birth rate, death rate, and resources?)

But I will keep an open mind and read the book and I truly appreciate the recommendation.