INVOLVE YOUR KIDS IN PHILANTHROPY

This book belongs to:

COLORING & ACTIVITY BOOK

As a financial professional and the father of a four-year-old myself, I have been thinking it is never too early to start children learning about contributions they can make to charity. In fact, recent studies show that children who learned about giving from their parents are 65 percent more likely to teach their own children to give. Here are some tips I discovered on the best ways to engage your kids in giving, whether they are five or 25.

ELEMENTARY-AGE CHILDREN

1. Talk. Tell your children stories about ways that you give back and some of the organizations you support. Show them what this looks like, for example, take them to the Sunday School class you are teaching and let them help pass things out to the younger kids.

2. Participate in monthly family volunteer days. Even relatively young children can help with activities such as park cleanups or sorting food for a can drive. Get them involved so they feel empowered and proud of their contribution.

3. Provide a three-part “giving allowance” to encourage both saving and giving.

An allowance with equal parts set aside for saving, spending, and giving to charity helps reinforce good saving habits and the value of generosity. Later, sit down and choose together where the donation goes. Take their input seriously and ask them about organizations they enjoy or benefit from to help get them excited about what they can do to help.

For example, we worked with a grandfather who took his grandkids to their church preschool to talk to the director. She shared that they needed some new toys and tricycles. So, the grandpa and his grandkids went to the toy store, picked out the toys and trikes and brought them back to the preschool directly. The kids felt so good about what they could do!

Adolescents

4. Teach financial literacy & financial values. Sound money management skills set kids up for future success. Giving certainly has a place in discussions about spending and saving decisions. Talk about the 10-10-100 rule. Give 10%, save 10% and live on 100% of what is left. You’ll be amazed at how you don’t miss the money you save and give away!

Introduce “discretionary giving” by allowing your teen to distribute some of the funds you’ve set aside for family giving. Give your teens a budget for giving and let them choose where to direct the funds. They may want to choose one organization to support and have a greater impact or choose several. Again, take them on a field trip to see how the organization works so they can get an up close and personal view. Let them ask questions of the director so they feel connected.

5. Encourage teens to volunteer on their own. Volunteering helps teens learn valuable lessons about responsibility and teamwork while meeting new people. There are many volunteer organizations who are always looking for able workers!

COLLEGE-AGE AND YOUNG ADULTS

6. Expand discretionary giving authority. Once your children have proven that they can be responsible and thoughtful about how they distribute funds you can have deeper conversations with them. Discuss any philanthropic goals in your own will and estate with them.

7. Encourage membership at their favorite charities. Committee membership is a great way to contribute and learn more about an organization and many do have junior boards. Many nonprofits are also looking to refresh their boards by recruiting and cultivating next-gen board members.

8. Continue to engage in conversations about giving. Make sure you continue to talk about giving and volunteer activities with your young adult children. You may even find a common cause or passion for certain types of charities or ministries.

My pre-k son and I may not be having a discussion about our family’s charitable remainder trust anytime soon, but when the time comes, he will be better prepared for a lifetime of continuing on our family's values through a spirit of generational giving.

For those of us with young kids, there’s a few free things we can do now. Email info@ lsssc.org to get a copy of their free activity and coloring book for children. This can help them learn about how Lutherans and others of faith help people. You can also always call your financial advisor for help and advice on how to start your child participating in your family’s plan at any of the above stages.