There I was, standing in line and ready to pay for my purchases. The total was $10.06. I gave the cashier a $20 and $.06. In my mind this made perfect sense, I would walk away from the exchange with a $10 bill. All would be right with the world. However, what happened next was a sincere lesson in why the skill of making change is necessary.
This sweet young lady stood there, like a deer in the headlights, staring at the money in her hand. Suddenly, this brought me back to my own first job, and I realized that she didn’t understand how to make change without the help of her register.
A Simple Life Skill Forgotten
She reminded me of myself on my first day, and thankfully I had a patient manager. When I realized how simple it was, I wondered why hadn’t I been taught sooner? My generation was so dependent on calculators and the growing electronics field, that this essential skill was already being lost.
I can only imagine how difficult it is now. A bank manager explained that many young people don’t know how to balance their checkbooks. They’re totally reliant upon the e-bank portal and consequently, being hit with overdraft fees.
I think it’s time to get back to basics.
It really is a societal and cultural issue. It starts when children are given calculators before they have any idea how to use pencil and paper to solve long division or large quantity addition. We think we are bettering our children by teaching them how to use devices to do their mathematics. But is society actually creating a problem?
Can Your Kids Handle Money?
It was recently that, as I was working in the Skill Trek library, I loved reviewing that handling money exchange is a life skill taught in the Skill Trek program. And we begin teaching these money skills early. From the very beginning, we teach skills ranging from coin identification for the younger set to handling money and exchanging cash for the older kids. We also include how to plan a household budget, how to build credit, how to get out of debt, and other skills related to financial literacy.
As one mom writes, regarding our financial literacy skills: I love that when I enter into a program like this, I can feel confident that my children will not only learn valuable skills in the kitchen, the family garage, and at the dining table, but they will also go into what could be their very first job, prepared and ready for their first day. Thanks to Skill Trek, my children will master handling money, making change, budgeting, building credit and so many more skills.
Head on over and see what all the buzz is about, you won’t be disappointed.
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