You know the saying, “a penny saved is a penny earned” well over and over I hear that pennies now have no value. Will our children even use coins or cash. So often now I find myself just using a debit, or credit card to pay for anything and everything. My 2 year old already knows what the plastic is for. So how do we go about teaching our children how to save money?

Teaching my children now would be just in using toys, or most would think that only the pretend cash register and coins can teach them about money but I would have to say that you are wrong.

My kids are already learning the value of paper and saving change here and there. Every Sunday, I have to go get a paper. My daughter knows this. So I take her with me. We drive over to Albertsons and buy a paper on Sundays. Then I clip coupons.

You might give me an excuse and say that, I have to wait until the kids are napping or in bed. I know how children love to be under foot or want to be held when I’m not giving them my undivided attention? So the trick is to GET THEM INVOLVED.

By letting my kids look at all of the ads I can sit at the kitchen table and get my coupons clipped. They feel like they are helping because I let them look at the ads. It’s also a great way for a toddler to look at the pictures and identify the grocery list. They know which products you purchase every time you go to the grocery store.

Milk
Cheese
Bread
Fruit
Veggies
Pop Tarts

These are things my daughter looks for. Yes, she’s only two but she can find these things in the ad. Then we search for matching coupons to go with the sale ads that she identified by looking at the pictures.

I’m not saying this magic happens all the time but it does happen and it saves me time, and we’re doing something together. Even my son likes to look, he still eats and destroys but he’s growing up quickly. By doing this with my daughter, one of her first words was coupon and she likes to carry the coupons that she wants to use. Her favorites used to be for Gerber products, now they are for purple products.

All of this can be applied to going back to school and letting your children pick out what they need and finding the best sales in the Sunday paper or on-line.

This post was written in participation with Parent Bloggers Network with Capital One to get the word out about the talking to kids about budgeting and finances. Capital One and national consumer advocacy group Consumer Action sponsor the Moneywi$e eLearning tool, which includes a section all about talking to kids about money.  Plus, check out @TeachingMoney on Twitter to get bite-sized family-focused financial tips.

Capital One wants to help you teach your children to save.