In this day of credit cards, easy loans, advertisement bombardments, and full-fledged consumerism, I was pleasantly surprised to see an article on how a 14-year old girl, called Willow Tufano, bought a house in Florida for $12,000 with her own savings!

The article set me thinking on how I could inculcate the habit of saving money in my daughters, and I found that there are some things that still haven’t changed , and in this case, it’s the good ole’ piggy bank !

A few simple pointers will make this lesson on saving money, fun and interesting, for the kids.

We are trying to save money, so don’t start by spending money on a piggy bank. Any empty bottle or tin can be decorated by the kids and made personalized for use by them.

n the process, make one for yourself also, because when the kids see you putting money into your piggy bank, you are setting an example to them.

Explain to them on how they can save for a particular item that they have their heart set on. You can even stick a picture of that on the piggy bank or in their room.

If it is an item that is expensive, then parents can even reward the child’s attempts at saving by promising to match whatever he /she puts into the piggy bank.

You can explain the concept of a savings bank account to kids aged eight years and more, and help them open one.

If the child is given a weekly or monthly allowance, encourage them to squirrel away at least a portion of it.

It helps to talk money matters with kids, at their level. For example, show them how you go to the Grocer’s with a budget, and list of things needed and how you try not to exceed the budget, or buy anything unnecessary.

When they have reached their target amount, make sure that they are taken immediately to the store to purchase what they have been saving for. Do not make them wait. If you do, their interest to save will wane.

When I say I don’t have money to buy a particular item, my six year old has a quick response to that, ‘Just go to that machine and take some money’, she says! Explaining the concept of ATM’s and credit cards to kids is difficult but not impossible.