For many kids the gift of a piggy bank from a grandparent is about the closest they get to a financial education. Little wonder then that years later many adults find talking about money intimidating, confusing and stressful. Is there a better way to introduce children to healthy attitudes towards saving, spending and sharing? The partners in an innovative school program in British Columbia believe they have some of those answers.
The pilot project is a collaborative effort between Moonjar Canada, a children’s financial education company, the North Shore Credit Union, and the North Vancouver School District. The project is built on the Moonjar financial educational program for children that encourages them to “shoot for the moon”, to go after their dreams and goals, but to learn good money habits along the way. Moonjar was initially launched in 2001 by Eulalie M. Scandiuzzi, a native of Seattle, but it is now found in homes and schools around the world.
Central to the Moonjar approach is a whole new style piggy bank. Instead of the old one-slot icon we are all familiar with, the award-winning ‘Moonjar’ has three compartments “that remind us of the choices we can make with our money. One each for: Saving, Spending and Sharing.” A host of games, books, teaching aids and other materials rounds out the program for a wide range of age groups.
Brent Dobson lives in Ottawa and works in the financial management and consulting world. He discovered Moonjar while looking for positive tools and resources to help teach some basic money concepts to his three children, ages 8, 5 and 1. “I know how important money is in people’s lives, but most of us get off to a bad start”, he explains. “I wanted my own children to grow up with a healthy attitude towards money, so I went looking for something we could use as a family to open up conversations about allowances – about sharing with others – about making smart financial choices – and saving for things you really want or need.”
Dobson became so passionate about the Moonjar program that he obtained the Canadian rights. He now shares his enthusiasm with financial educators and parents across the country. The first Moonjar kid in Canada? His daughter, Emma, now 8-years old. “I was really impressed with her”, Dobson relates. “She went from being a spender to a sharer. We had long conversations about the different places she could direct the share portion of her money. She decided to help support the Children’s Hospital. That was her choice.”
Equally enthusiastic about Moonjar are Lianne Dunster and Catherine Downes of the North Shore Credit Union, in North Vancouver. In partnership with the North Vancouver School District, they are running a customized bilingual version of the program, using what they call a “Wishbank.” Joanne Robertson, District Principal for the North Vancouver School District, says “The ‘Moonjar’ moneybox provides us with a creative way of teaching financial literacy in the primary years. It fits well into the Grade 2 math program.” Plans are already in the works to expand the program to other school districts and other grades.
As Dunster says, “It is so exciting to help a child open their first savings account. This program just builds on that. It makes money matters easy to grasp.” And Downes adds, “It is so visual. And it is a cool way to open discussions about money.”
Sounds great. Now I know what I’m getting my husband for Christmas! – Karin Mizgala
Karin Mizgala is a Vancouver-based fee-only financial planner with an MBA and a degree in psychology. She’s the President of LifeDesign Financial and co-founder of the Women’s Financial Learning Centre.
Parents often ask me if they should give their children an allowance. The answer is yes! As our children grow and change they will have many different dreams for their future, but whichever path they take they will need to know how to manage their money.
Where did you learn about money? From school, from your parents, from a life of hard knocks?!