Building Financial Fluency with your Child

By: Sean Sloan

Is school doing enough to build your child’s financial fluency? All too often, we hear from people who left high school without the skills needed to manage a budget, balance a checkbook, or complete tax documents. Most schools incorporate money into their curriculum starting from counting money in early elementary school to using compound interest formulas in high school or even taking a personal finance management class, but for most people, that is not enough.

This is especially true for kids and young adults who have learning difficulties. Dyslexia Reading Connection’s math program has some great money skills built right in. Students build their financial fluency skills in our Money, Decimals, and Pre-Algebra books. Additionally, more money skills are sprinkled in throughout the program.

Let’s explore some tips to help build financial fluency at home. Introducing money concepts to young children can be simple and fun. Everyday activities offer great opportunities to build financial awareness and responsibility. Here are a few easy ways to get started:

  • Read Price Tags Together
    While shopping, encourage your child to read price tags. This helps them become familiar with numbers, decimals, and the language of money in a real-world setting.
  • Estimate Totals at Checkout
    Ask your child to estimate the total cost of your items while waiting in line. This builds mental math skills like rounding, estimating, and adding multiple numbers quickly.
  • Earn a Weekly Allowance
    Giving your child a small allowance in exchange for completing chores teaches them how to manage money. They can practice saving, spending wisely, and even setting goals.

Chores not only help children earn money but also build responsibility and life skills. Some examples include:

  • Washing dishes
  • Taking out the trash
  • Cleaning bathrooms
  • Vacuuming or sweeping
  • Shoveling snow
  • Picking up after pets
  • Mowing the lawn (for older kids)

By weaving money lessons into daily life, you’re helping your child build a strong foundation for financial literacy and independence. As children grow, involving them in real-life financial tasks can help deepen their understanding and confidence. Here are some practical ways to support older students:

  • Include Them in Tax Prep
    Invite your child to sit with you while you fill out tax documents or meet with a tax professional. This gives them early exposure to an important adult responsibility.
  • Share Your Budgeting Tools
    Show them how you use a budgeting or banking app. Walk them through how you track spending, pay bills, and manage income.
  • Explain Bank Accounts
    Talk about the differences between checking and savings accounts, including how each is used and why both are important.
  • Help Them Open a Savings Account
    Set up a savings account in their name. It’s a great place for them to deposit money from birthdays, holidays, or a part-time job—and a great way to practice saving and managing money.

Lastly and especially for kids with learning difficulties, it is advantageous to make things visual and practical for them. This is why practicing money skills in stores or giving them a motivator like an allowance can help show them the why instead of just telling them the why for learning money skills. Bringing older kids to appointments or showing them the paperwork that adults need to fill out will also show them the importance of building the skills they will need as adults.