Some parents may not consider allowing their young teen to get a checking account at all, but there are valid reasons why it can be good for them to have one.

A checking account can give them a chance to responsibly shine with money and teach them how to:

• use debit cards
• monitor and plan ahead for automatic payments
• use an ATM card
• write checks (should they ever need to do that)

They can learn while they are still under your direct supervision (as opposed to when they go off to college and aren’t!) » Read more

I got my first job when I was 14. And like many teens with their first job, I happily cashed my check and bought whatever I felt like with the money. To me it was all “spending money”, so why not?

Now it’s not terrible that I spent it all (although I do really wish I’d saved at least 10-20% of it instead), but I wonder if those years of spending freely as a teen impacted the way I looked at my paycheck later on.

After all, I didn’t have my first real regular expense until after I graduated from high school. » Read more

Way back in high school, I tried hard to get 100% on all of my assignments and tests, and usually succeeded. When I didn’t, I figured out where I went wrong, got help, and tried harder. I also ended up doing really well on the ACT test.

So of course my parents encouraged me to apply for scholarships when it was time to think about college. » Read more

Congratulations are in order. Your child has graduated from high school! What an amazing four years it has been. Middle school children walk in and young adults walk out ready for college. Well, almost ready for college. Here are five things your high school graduate can do this summer to be even more prepared for college in the fall: » Read more