Most financial planning experts agree that it’s best to start early when teaching children about money. If there’s one thing that Filipinos can do now to raise the country’s savings rate in the future, this is it. One child at a time.

Allowance appears to be the most popular tool to do this. INQUIRER.net’s personal finance article today says money management is conspicuously absent from most school curricula, which means lessons on financial literacy should begin at home. Citibank answers this question from a reader:

My husband and I set the allowance for our eldest child, now in 2nd year high school.  We wanted her to have enough money so she won’t go hungry during the day, but not too much that she can buy anything on sight. Just one month after school started, our daughter is complaining that her allowance is “too small”.   Now, we’re thinking maybe she should just bring “baon” and we’ll cut her allowance.  What do you suggest? – Benny C.

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I’m playing catch-up with a grin on my face, seeing that this blog has been active despite my absence last week. What a magnificent thing it is to see people sharing experiences, knowledge, and skills unselfishly with each other. Thank you!

Last week, INQUIRER.net’s personal finance section featured an article on money lessons for children. Some of the advice may surprise parents. Instead of the traditional “teach children how to do with less”, the article talked about giving children extra allowance so they would learn to budget their extra money. It talked about teaching children the importance of saving, investing, keeping good records, of being content with what they have, of being good stewards of their belongings, of learning how to give to others and enjoying the fruits of their labors so they will not turn out to be misers.

Good, basic advice. Unfortunately, they will all be useless without consistent practice. Let me explain.

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SPENDING the weekend in Tagaytay didn’t seem to be a good idea at first. Vacations, even short and simple ones, cost money. Money Smarts was just a little bit cranky, adding up the cost of gas, accommodations and food in her mind.

But as our little family car left behind the hustle and bustle of the city, the swaying coconut leaves and gentle rolling hills of Tagaytay slowly lifted our spirits, willing our city-tired muscles and tense nerves to relax.

This trip got me thinking about times when it’s best not to hold back on spending. Money Smarts is all about discipline, restraint and, well, being money-smart of course, but there are times when holding the purse strings too tightly may not be a good idea.

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How would you like to hear a 9-year old kid talk about marketing strategies, loan agreements, supplies, wages, taxes and…uh…thinking out of the box?

Henry Ong, president of RFP (Phils) Institute has cooked up another project — this time to teach children how to be entrepreneurs. No, they won’t be asked to listen to lectures or even interactive classroom discussions. They will actually be asked to think of a business and run it for a day.

Cool, huh? Read all about it here. Before I even mention something in MoneySmarts, I go through it, test it, see if it works. There’s too much at stake and no, I am not being paid to advertise it. So there. Nothing can be more precious than integrity.

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