1. Most banks offer free checking and savings accounts for children and don’t have minimum balance requirements or other hoops to jump through. You can open one for your kid with as little as $20 at some branches.

2. Offer to match their savings for as long as you like to encourage them to save instead of spend. Reward them after a trip to the bank with something they love – ice cream or a visit to the park.

3. As your child enters their teens, begin teaching simple money management and open them a checking account with a debit card. Make sure you opt out of overdrafts so the card gets declined if they don’t have enough money to not incur any additional fees.

4. Deposit their allowance and any holiday or birthday money in their account to teach them financial responsibility and that there is no such thing as free money, especially with plastic.

5. Encourage your children to make regular money by dog walking, babysitting or doing chores for neighbors. This will help build their work ethic at any early age.

6. When it’s time for seasonal shopping, deposit the amount you want to spend in their checking account so they learn to budget. This helps them realize what clothes and other items actually cost and how it relates to the money they’ve earned.

7. Setup online access to their bank account and encourage them to check it often and see how to properly manage their money.

8. Involve them in your family finances and let them see exactly how expensive being an adult really is. This will help them understand that everything has a price and growing up too early isn’t as fun as TV may make it seem.