Enter Our Youth Financial Literacy Contest

 

Complete the Worksheets for a Chance to Win 

👉First things first 👈 -- you will need to download the complete Parent Guide, this contains all of the information and worksheets that you will need to review and complete with your child.  More details on that later. 😉

Encourage your child to watch the videos and complete the worksheets. Children who complete each worksheet and submit them by April 30th,will be entered into a prize drawing to win a 🎮 Nintendo Switch for each worksheet completed!  Parents, we didn’t forget about you! You’ll be entered to win a $200 prize pack from First Alliance Credit Union that includes gift cards to Moka Coffee, Kwik Trip, and a Costco membership! 🎉

Earn BONUS Points! 

If you bring your child to open a youth savings account at First Alliance Credit Union during the month of April, you’ll 😮DOUBLE 😮 your chance of winning the prizes! That's up to three extra entries! And there’s more -- children who open up a savings account in April will receive a FREE piggy bank 🐷 (while supplies last)! If your child already has an account at First Alliance Credit Union, simply stop by a branch to make a deposit during the month of April for more chances to win!

Please note: You may also pick up blank worksheets and drop off completed worksheets at any of First Alliance Credit Union’s branch locations. 

The Importance of Financial Literacy

No parent would ever dream of letting their children grow up not knowing how to read or write. When it comes to financial literacy, though, many children grow up not knowing the basics of money management, let alone how to set financial goals.  

This isn’t because most parents are bad parents. It’s because the parents themselves were never taught financial management skills, and as a result they don’t understand the importance of teaching financial literacy to children. That’s where this course comes in. These videos will help start important conversations with your kids about managing money. 

We’ve found that the best way to teach children basic money management strategies is to use the concept of Save, Share, Spend. This concept encourages kids to budget the money they get from gifts or allowance. When teaching this concept, we recommend having children put 25% of the money they get into saving and dedicate 5% for sharing, leaving them with 70% they can spend however they want. 

The modules in this free course are designed to help your child understand each of the three categories, with a brief video and a follow-up worksheet you can complete with your children.✏️ We’ll also include more ideas in each module that you can use to continue teaching your kids these important money skills long after you’ve completed this course. 

👩‍🏫 Teaching your children the importance of “Save, Spend, Share” at a young age can sow the seeds of financial literacy. It can help them understand how to manage money and reach their financial goals.

In the free Parent Guidebook, you'll find all of the required worksheets that we will ask you to submit once they are all complete.  This will be how you and your child enter the contest. Quick suggestion -- it's pretty important to download this PDF, print it out and maybe even hang it on the fridge! 🙌

We’ve also included 10 bonus tips about teaching your kids money skills, as well as a list of books available at the Rochester Public Library to continue these important financial conversations with your kids. 💰 You can also find a list of resources that will help you keep learning on the First Alliance Credit Union site, including blog posts like: 

• 6 Tips for Teaching Children About Finances
• Things to Consider Before Starting an Allowance for Children
• 5 Ways to Teach Your Children Good Money Moves This Halloween
• How to Teach Your Children About Budgeting

If you want to give your child a chance to put everything they’ve learned into practice, help them become a member of First Alliance Credit Union today. 😀 Once they’re a member, they can open their own youth account. Even better, they can track their progress through online banking or our mobile app.  

Download the Parent Guide Book and Get Started Today

In this section, we’re learning all about Saving.  What is it?  How do you do it?  Once you’ve watched the video, fill out the worksheet!  Don’t forget to submit your worksheet in order to win an awesome 🎮Nintendo Switch! 📝

 

Find your Savings Activity Worksheet in the Parent Guide

 

The Importance of Learning to Save

The most important financial skill you can teach your child is how to save money. It’s no exaggeration to say that being able to save money can make the difference between your child being burdened with debt or living a financially stable life as an adult. 💵

While there are many ways you can teach children to save money, the best way to get your children in the habit of saving is to help them set a savings goal. For instance, if your child wants an expensive toy, use the price of that toy to give them a goal to save for. Help them figure out how much they’ll need to save, and then show them how long they’ll need to save to meet their goal according to the simple budget we recommended in the introduction. 

For instance, if one of your children wants to buy a $30 Lego set and they get an allowance of $20 a month, you can help your child figure out that by saving 25% of their allowance, they would be saving $5 a month and be able to get their toy in 6 months. You could also show your child that if they were to save 70% of the money they can spend, they would only need to save for two months to get the Lego set.

When you’re teaching your children to save, make sure you give them a safe place to store their money. 💰 You can go with a mason jar, a tried and true piggy bank, or even better open up a savings account at First Alliance Credit Union. They’ll be able to see their money growing when they look at their account using online banking or the First Alliance mobile app, and they’ll also be less tempted to use that money for an impulse purchase. 

In order to help your child get in the habit of saving, help them complete the activity worksheet we provide after they have watched the “What is Saving Money” video on this page. Remember that you have to turn in this page in order to enter the prize drawing! 

We’ve also included a savings goal tracker in your course packet that you can use to help your children set savings goals. Remember, you can print this out as many times as you want to help your child keep setting financial goals for years to come. 💹

Don’t forget that you can also find 10 bonus tips about teaching your kids money skills in your free Parent Guidebook, as well as a list of books available at the Rochester Public Library to continue these important financial conversations with your kids. 🙌

In this section, we're learning about spending.  What is it?  How do you do it?  Once you’ve watched the video, fill out the worksheet!  Don’t forget to submit your worksheet in order to win an awesome 🎮 Nintendo Switch!! 📝

 

Find your Spending Activity Worksheet in the Parent Guide

The Importance of Learning to Spend

Learning to spend money is by far the easiest of the three skills, not to mention the most fun. However, learning to spend money with care can be a bit more challenging. Children are often impulsive, so they don’t always think about long-term ways to spend their money. 

You can help your children learn to spend with care by teaching them to think about what they want to spend money on before they spend it. 💲 Let them know that wanting things is okay, but that they’ll have to make choices about what they want to buy based on how much money they have. If you have a child who wants to buy five toys but only have enough money for two of them, you can help your child figure out which of the toys are most important to them and which ones they can live without. 

This is also a great opportunity to teach children about needs vs wants. If your child wants to buy ice cream but they also broke their sister’s Barbie doll, they need to be responsible and replace the doll before buying something for themselves. 

Going back to the $20 allowance example from previous sections, if a child saves 25% and sets aside 5% to share, they will have 70%, or $14, to spend. Encourage them to think about how they can best spend those $14, and even whether they might want to save part of that $14 for a financial goal. 💰

Remember, it’s up to you as a parent to help your children learn to prioritize their spending so they learn to only spend what they can afford at the moment. In order to help your children learn this lesson, though, you’ll need to resist the urge to give your children more money when they don’t have enough to buy everything they want. Even if your child is only a dollar short, they need to learn the important lesson that no one will give them money for free when they’re adults. 

Once your child has finished watching the “What is spending money?” video on this page, sit down with them to complete the spending activity worksheet. Remember that you have to turn in this page in order to enter the prize drawing! ✏️

We’ve also included a save, spend, share kids budgeting tracker 💹 in your course packet to help your children practice their new money skills over time. You can print this out as many times as you want to help your child keep setting financial goals for years to come. 

📌 Don’t forget that you can also find 10 bonus tips about teaching your kids money skills in your Parent Guidebook as well as a list of books available at the Rochester Public Library to continue these important financial conversations with your kids. 

In this section, we’re learning all about Sharing.  What is it?  How do you do it?  Once you’ve watched the video, fill out the worksheet! Don’t forget to submit your worksheet in order to win an awesome Nintendo Switch!

 

Find your Sharing Activity Worksheet in the Parent Guide

 

The Importance of Learning to Share

While you want your children to be financially successful, you also want them to be kind. However, kindness doesn’t just happen. Instead, it needs to be taught and encouraged throughout a child’s life, starting from a young age. 

While you can teach children to share their toys and talk about what kindness is, you can also teach them how to be kind by donating 🕰️ time and money 💵 to causes they care about. Getting your children to set aside 5% of their money to share is a great way to start building a sense of compassion and empathy in children. 

The best way to start talking with your children about sharing is to talk about things that are important to them. Find out if they care about helping 🐾 animals, or if they’re worried about their neighbors going hungry or losing their homes. 🏡

Once you know what your children are passionate about, you can help them find local charities that support those passions. Then, every few months, take the 5% you’ve saved and either donate it directly to their cause or find out what supplies the charity needs most and help your child shop for those items and deliver them to the charity together. 🙌

As an example, if your child is getting a $20 allowance, putting aside 5% of that a month would be $4. After six months, your child will have $24 saved up, which is enough to buy some canned food for a food pantry, a bag of dog food for an animal shelter, or even a nice blanket for a homeless shelter. 😀 This not only helps out worthy charities—but it also lets your children visualize the difference their money can make when they buy something tangible for a charity, which is very empowering. 

If you really want your children to get into the habit of sharing, though, you should model the behavior yourself. Let your kids know what charities you support and why. You can also share stories with your children about other kids in the community who are performing acts of service with your children. 

You should also know that you can still help your children get into the habit of sharing even if they don’t get a regular allowance. You can encourage your children to hold a fundraiser, take a tour of local non-profits or even volunteer your time together at a charity you all agree is important. 

In order to help your child get in the habit of sharing, help them complete the activity worksheet we provide after they have watched the “What is Sharing Money” video on this page. Remember that you have to turn in this page in order to enter the prize drawing! 📝

👉 We’ve also included Save, Share, and Spend labels in your course packet to help your children keep their money separated into these categories until it’s time to use the money for its intended purpose. You can print out these labels as many times as you need.

📌 Don’t forget that you can also find 10 bonus tips about teaching your kids money skills in your free Parent Guidebook, as well as a list of books available at the Rochester Public Library to continue these important financial conversations with your kids.  

Are you feeling good about your completed packet?  We are! 🤗  

Go ahead and give it one last look to make sure you've completed all three required worksheet:

1. Module 1 - Savings Worksheet
2. Module 2 - Spending Worksheet
3. Module 3 - Sharing Worksheet

Scan all of those worksheets into one document on your computer, or simply use your mobile device to take pictures and upload those as a compressed file.  And that's it! 👍 You're entered to win some totally awesome prizes! 🎉