Lucky money is not just money: How adults give children the first lesson in finance

As the material value of lucky money increases, the story of handling and managing lucky money also raises many issues worth considering.

Talking to Lao Dong reporters, Master Le Thi Thuy Sen - Editor-in-Chief of the Banking Times, a media expert on financial education - said: If properly oriented, lucky money can become an extremely valuable "first financial lesson" for children.

Lucky money - spiritual value greater than material value

According to MSc Le Thi Thuy Sen, lucky money or lucky money is a beautiful custom in Vietnamese traditional culture, expressing wishes for health, luck, obedientness and good study that adults send to children in the new year. For many generations, it is a childhood memory of innocence, excitement, and the joy of the beginning of the year for both the giver and the receiver.

In essence, lucky money has more spiritual meaning than material value. When understanding that spirit correctly, lucky money will not become pressure, nor will it be distorted into comparison or calculation" - Ms. Sen emphasized.

However, reality shows that in the context of economic development, the value of lucky money is increasing, many families are confused in their behavior: children are curious to open lucky money envelopes right in front of adults, comparing gains and losses, more and less; parents are wondering whether to let their children keep the money themselves or "manage it for them", how to use that money reasonably.

According to experts, it is the way adults treat lucky money that will shape children's initial perception of money. "If we only consider lucky money as pocket money, we have missed a very good opportunity to educate children about finance," she said.

Teach children to behave properly and safely with lucky money

The first step, according to Master Le Thi Thuy Sen, is to help children understand the meaning of the lucky money custom. When they understand that it is a wish, love and expectation, children will know how to cherish it more instead of just caring about the face value.

Adults need to guide children on basic politeness when receiving lucky money: Do not open lucky money envelopes right in front of the giver, do not compare how much money is, know how to say thank you, show respect and gratitude. That is not only politeness, but also a lesson about living attitude.

In addition, children also need to be analyzed about the risks of keeping cash themselves, such as easily dropping, losing, or arbitrarily spending, leading to waste. "When children understand why they need to manage money, they will change their awareness and behavior," Ms. Sen said.

A fairly common habit is to put lucky money in "piggy banks". According to experts, this is a traditional form of saving, helping children form a habit of saving. However, if they only stop there, children will not be exposed to modern financial concepts.

Instead of keeping all the money in piggy banks - which are potentially risky - parents can guide children to deposit savings at banks. This is both safe and helps children understand the concept of'money generates profit', meaning money can'generate money," Ms. Sen analyzed.

Many parents believe that a large amount of money is needed to deposit savings, but in reality, many credit institutions receive deposits of at least tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of VND. This is a favorable condition for children to access the official financial system early.

Personal financial management: Great lessons begin with small lucky money envelopes

According to Ms. Le Thi Thuy Sen, personal financial management thinking can be simply understood as "skillfully using money". But "skillfulness" here is not just about spending sparingly in the style of "skillfully eating to be full, skillfully contracting to be warm", but to equip children with financial knowledge suitable for the times.

Children need to get acquainted with basic concepts early such as saving, spending, investing and sharing. An effective way is to share lucky money with children into small "funds" with different goals.

The first is the spending fund for necessary needs. Through this, children learn to distinguish between "need to buy" and "want to buy", know how to prioritize things that are really needed and consider when choosing to shop.

Second is the savings fund. Saving a portion of money to save helps children form a habit of financial provision and understand that saving should be prioritized before spending.

Third is the investment fund. For children, investment is not necessarily complex concepts. It can be buying books to read - investing in knowledge; or depositing savings to receive interest. These experiences will lay the foundation for healthy financial habits in the future.

Finally, the sharing fund. Giving a small portion of lucky money to help people in difficult circumstances, or buying a small gift for relatives and friends, will help children learn a lesson about compassion, care and responsibility to the community.

When properly financially educated, children not only know how to manage money, but also form positive life values such as diligence, love of labor, knowing how to share and be responsible to themselves, family and society," Ms. Le Thi Thuy Sen emphasized.