FINANCIAL EDUCATION FOR YOUNG PEOPLE

Most of us never got a real financial education. We were left to figure out money on our own, usually the expensive way. We can fix that, and the earlier we start, the better.

Financial literacy is a skill, not a talent. With a foundation in personal finance, saving, and investing, young people can make informed decisions that compound over a lifetime, whether they learn it in a classroom or at the kitchen table.

Evidence from studies such as the OECD PISA assessment on student financial literacy shows how early financial education prevents the habits that lead to debt, insecurity, and stress later in life. Teaching practical financial principles early contributes to personal well-being and strengthens the financial health of entire communities.

This page collects the best resources for introducing young people to money, for teachers planning a lesson and parents starting the conversation at home.

And if you’re a student: start here, then explore the whole site. Everything is free, and there’s no age limit.

I want to give my kids enough so that they can feel that they can do anything but not so much that they can do nothing. Warren Buffett

Unless the millennials learn a small amount about finance, they’ll fall victim to the Five Horsemen of Personal Finance Apocalypse: failure to save, ignorance of financial theory, unawareness of financial history, dysfunctional psychology, and the rapacity of the investment industry. William J. Bernstein

The habit of saving is itself an education; it fosters every virtue, teaches self-denial, cultivates the sense of order, trains forethought, and so broadens the mind. T.T. Munger

The most important investment you can make is in yourself. Warren Buffett

There is a View that if you are not going to go to science, engineering, finance, or accounting, then you don´t need to do math. And that is a very narrow view of what math is. Counted Out – Documentary.

“I “trick” myself into staying invested by imagining I’m the Chief Investment Officer for my kids, who lack the ability to invest on their own [yet]. Expanding your investment time horizon to 20 years can make staying the course much easier.” Financial Samurai

“Financial education should be everywhere. We need to focus on it in primary and secondary schools, and among adults and professionals.” Wim Mijs (EBF CEO)

Nowadays, financial literacy is an essential skill. We need to have a lifecycle in mind concerning financial education.” Anna Maria Lusardi (Professor at GWSB; Gounder and Academic Director of GFLEC)