Fun Money Games for Kids

Kids will absolutely need to know how to usemoney in their daily lives. We love these howto count money games that teach kids aboutbudgeting and buying and selling.

BEST MONEY BOARD GAMES

Plan your next family games afternoon around these board games.

MONOPOLY

The aim of the game is to accumulate the most wealth and property. The most successful players are those who can negotiate deals with other players and strategically gain the most money-generating properties around the board. There are pitfalls and setbacks along the way – you may ‘chance’ to get a sudden unexpected bill – but equally you could gain a sudden windfall!

There is a wide range of Monopoly board games to choose from, including a Brisbane version. For kids from around 5 years old, we recommend Junior Monopoly.

PAYDAY

Pay Day comes at the end of the month, and to make it there without going broke, players will have to manage their money wisely.

Try to stack up the cash by finding bargains and selling them for a profit. Take out loans if necessary, and watch out for those bills. The game features a Pay Day die that adds unexpected twists and turns to gameplay. The player who can make — and hang on to — the most cash wins!

MONEY MATCH CAFÉ

Money Match Café challenges primary students aged 5-8 to match the correct coins to pay for their menu items. It’s a fun game that develops skills in addition, money handling, and imaginative play, with two levels of difficulty for progression.

SQUATTER

Squatter is an all-original Australian board game about sheep farming – what could be more Aussie than that! The game is based on real life farming experiences and the challenges of running a business, when strategy (good business planning and investment) can be overturned by luck (drought, bushfire, and floods).

Within the game, children can learn about business development, asset protection, fluctuating stock prices … and red legged earth mites! Being Australian, Squatter is one or the most relatable money games to play!

POCKET MONEY

Pocket Money introduces children to the idea that money must be earned before it can be spent – or saved! It was designed in Melbourne, so kids will learn with realistic Australian play money.

As children progress around the board, they can earn money by doing chores such as washing Grandpa’s car, feeding the neighbour’s cat, or even holding a garage sale. They also choose to buy things like treats for themselves or gifts for others, which is a great way to learn about giving money and receiving change with Australian currency.

FINANCIAL PEACE JUNIOR

Financial Peace Junior is designed to help you teach your kids about money. It’s packed with tools, resources, and step-by-step instructions for parents. There are ideas for activities and ageappropriate chores, and you’ll have all the tools you need to make learning about money a part of daily life. The lessons of working, giving, saving and spending are brought to life through fun stories in the activity book. Kids will love tracking their progress on the dryerase boards!

Financial Peace Junior doesn’t just give you the tools to teach your kids to win with money―it shows you how.

REAL LIFE MONEY GAMES

These real money games and boardgames support kids' learning aboutmoney and currency, and they're fun!

There are so many ways that you can teach kids about money using things that you already have at home. Make it creative, fun, positive and future focused.

PLAY SHOPS

Kids love playing shops, so put prices on your pantry items with texta or stickers and set up your own mini grocery store! Give your child a budget and let them work out which items they can buy without going over. Take it in turns to be the customer and the cashier to learn about money handling, budgeting, and counting change. You can make your own money tokens by writing denominations on bottle caps and slips of paper, or buy Australian play money (see below for stockists).

TIP: Mini cereal variety packs from the supermarket and juice poppa cartons make great scaled-down additions to your authentic mini store.

USE JUNK MAIL CATALOGUES

Think of you junk mail catalogues as a virtual store conveniently compressed into a few handy pages! Give your child a shopping list and a budget of real or play money and see if they can work out which store to go to this week for the best value on your weekly shop, and how much they can save out of their budget.

Younger children might like to cut out the pictures of the groceries you need to help you match them to the products in store.

Another great way to introduce the idea of budgeting and spending is to use the toy sale catalogues. If Santa has a budget of $100, which products on your wish list will he be able to buy? This can help children prioritise what they want to get the best outcome on Christmas morning!

PRACTICE BUDGETING

There are lots of ways to introduce budgeting to your child’s daily life. Look online for places you would like to go as a family – the entry costs, refreshment costs, transport costs etc., and set a budget. Challenge your children pick a venue, menu items and factor in the cost of public transport or parking, and let them take charge of your weekend’s entertainment!

PRACTICE SAVING

Children rarely take notice of the cost of things – unless they have to pay for it themselves! When going to a cafe or venue, give your child an allowance and let them know that they can keep any leftover money they don’t spend to put towards something that they really want.

You can set guidelines like $8 to spend at the café and $10 to spend at the shop, and point out that if they only spend $5 at the café they will then have $13 to spend at the store or save. Model the behaviour by letting them see you doing the same yourself. You will find your children soon start to make more modest purchases!

Written by Joanne Crane, Co-Editor of Families Magazine – Brisbane

For details of where to buy these games, and to find more fun money games for kids - including games played online and those that align with the Australian curriculum - read our full article online at www.familiesmagazine.com.au/money-games-for-kids