Helping Kids Achieve Financial Literacy

The NEFE Teen Resources Bureau: The NEFE Teen Resources Bureau focuses on teaching teens money management skills. While it's not truly a "game," it does have an appeal since it talks about money on a teen level. Truly appealing is a section that helps teens figure out how much they really need to move out on their own.

Practical Money Skills for Life: This Web site, created by VISA, is dedicated to financial literacy. It's suitable for those home-schooling their children. It has "games" for specific age groups, ranging from teens to adults, and an entire section aimed at teachers who want practical projects for their classrooms.

I couldn't write about kids and money without mentioning Junior Achievement. (I sit on its Chicago board.) JA is no longer an after-school business project. These days it uses volunteers to teach kids about economic concepts, starting in kindergarten and through the high school level. In Chicago alone, JA reaches 340,000 students every year. Become a volunteer in your local school system by contacting the national Junior Achievement organization.

If we want a future workforce that understands and appreciates business and the free enterprise economy, we'll have to train our kids. It's better to start young. And that's the Savage Truth.