The Best Sites for Kids and Teens to Learn About Money and How to Manage It

I had the priviledge of working with a financial education program for kids a couple of years ago, and that made me appreciate how important it is for young people to learn about money. The challenge of course is to develop programs and activities which present the subject as fun, relevant and even "cool". In recent years, we've seen the development of some very creative online sites aimed precisely at doing this (many of them sponsored by major financial institutions as part of their community service programs). This article points to some of the better sites for kids and teens that I have come across.

LEARNING ABOUT MONEY

Sites for younger kids

h.i.p Pocket Change (US Mint) A fun site created by the US Mint to help kids learn all about coins.

Kids' Bank Information on Money, Savings, Interest, Checking, and Electronic Banking presented in an easy-to-understand way. Suitable for younger children.

CIBC SmartStart Program This Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce site aimed at introducing kids to the CIBC SmartStart Program has a rather more commercial/marketing focus than I'd like. But it does provide a good introduction to banks and their products.

Sites for "Kids" and "Teens"

Sense and Dollars Fun, colourful site that's geared towards tweens and teens, created by Maryland Public Television.

Financial Education Curriculum A series of interactive lessons for kids and teens, organised by grade level.

The Mint Well-designed site covering topics such as earning, saving, spending, investing, giving, owing, safeguarding, and tracking.

Young Investor Focused on providing information on investing, planning, and earning. Games and puzzles help to reinforce the learning.

Sites for older teens

Money Talks Site created by the University of California Cooperative Extension (UCCE). Check out their well-written guides.

Young Investors Network Aimed at older teens, to guide them through the basics -- from goal-setting, to planning, budgeting, earning and investing.

Credit-ED for students Information and issues relating to credit and credit cards are discussed on this site.