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Financial Flash Newsletter

Focus on Youth - Teach Children to Save Day - April 27

To celebrate Financial Literacy month’s national “Teach Children To Save Day” and to encourage early savings habits in our youth, OnTrack is partnering with Asheville Savings Bank on Tuesday, April 27th, for “Roll Your Change Day.”

What: Throughout the day children can use the Coinstar machines for FREE at specific Asheville Savings Bank locations. Coinstar machines sort, separate, and count loose change, allowing you to turn it into cash or a deposit to your Asheville Savings account.

Where: Asheville Savings Bank locations in Enka, Marion, Reynolds, Skyland, and West Asheville. Visit www.ashevillesavings.com for exact locations. 

Celebrity Appearance: From 3:00-5:00 PM that day, Dime-a-Saurus – OnTrack’s colorful dinosaur promoting youth financial literacy - will be at the Enka location greeting the children and celebrating the special day. At 4:00 PM the 2010 Youth Financial Literacy local poster contest winners will be presented with their awards from Asheville Savings Bank.

Click here to see the national Youth Financial Literacy poster contest winners.

Youth Financial Literacy - A Primary Component to Adult Financial Prosperity

At OnTrack we define Financial Literacy as “the ability to gather and process information about your money life in a way that allows you to make successful financial decisions.” We know that financial skill building begins early in life. When kids are taught to save regularly and spend wisely, they will develop a solid foundation of money management skills and increase the chances that their adult years will be more prosperous.

If you want to begin teaching your children about money, here are some practical, fun tips to consider:

  • Have your children cut coupons with you; when grocery shopping, you can show them how much they helped save.
  • When your children receive gift money, set this aside in different accounts to save for things they want or need, such as “car fund” or “college fund”.
  • Teach savings.  Set them up with a child/student savings account or a CD that they cannot touch for a few years.  Let them watch their money grow. 
  • Talk to your children about ways to save money at home - turning off lights when leaving a room or not leaving the water running while brushing teeth. 
  • Having high school children yields many teachable moments. If your child plans to continue their education beyond high school, begin discussing options for paying for college when your child enters high school. Be sure your child understands how to use a checkbook, the wise use of credit, and how interest rates impact saving and debt.  Soon they will be receiving credit card offers in the mail; be sure to teach them to only use their credit card on what they can afford to pay off each month from their checking account.
  • Teach your children about putting money into IRAs early in life to help when they retire.  Most IRAs don’t have a minimum amount of money required for deposit each month, so your child can contribute to it as they accumulate money. 

Making savings a fun part of life from an early age is an essential component to cultivating long-term saving habits in our youth.   Smart kids grow into smarter adults.  Let’s get it rolling!

United Way NFCC Council on Accreditation