Financial Literacy for Teens: 8 Resources to Start Financial Freedom

Financial literacy for high school students - why?

Financial literacy is something I'm sure you've heard a lot about. Let's face it: today's news articles send many teens into believing they will never be able to afford their own home or even pay off student debt. The fact is that with some knowledge and assistance, every teen can learn how to invest in their future and become financially independent.

Begin your financial literacy by reading this post! I've put together a list of the best sources for teens who want to start learning more about finances. The list includes books, blogs, and YouTube videos - all great ways to understand money management without breaking the bank (pun intended).

Affiliate Disclosure: The Smart Parenting Guide is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we get commissions from qualifying purchases.

How to become financially literate: my story

I moved into the adult world without any financial literacy or experience. All I knew at the age of 25 was that a person must work as hard as possible to earn enough money for a living. I was concerned that I would be fired and not be able to make ends meet. The worst part is that I didn't understand how my worldview was harming me. I thought that I had chosen the wrong profession and was trying to find my life mission. 

However, I now realize that this was not the incorrect job but rather the wrong money mentality. You can't be happy with your life if you don't have enough money to live the lifestyle you desire.

At 26, I read "Rich Dad, Poor Dad" by R. Kyosaki for the first time. Only in the closing pages did I realize the core idea. But not entirely. Because investing was such a recent concept to me, I didn't even know the right word for it. All I knew was that this had something to do with stock trading. Just imagine a young working professional pursuing her Ph.D. who had no idea about investments.

Then my nearly ten-year financial self-improvement journey began. Now I realize that parents must teach their children about money from the age of five when they get their first allowance. However, not all parents are aware of money management.

I wish I'd learned the fundamentals of financial literacy when I was a teenager. That would have made my life so much easier from the start. As a result, I've decided to compose this blog article. It's for teenagers who want to learn how to begin their own lives, pursue their ambitions, and create their own wealth.

Where can you find resources for financial literacy?

There are plenty of books, podcasts, and YouTube videos on the subject of money. I'll highlight just a few of the best resources for financial literacy below.

1. Bodo Schäfer's "A Dog Named Money" is a best-selling book that is largely unknown in the English-speaking world. This book written for kids and teens explains all of the financial concepts that should have been covered in school. All of the central ideas on how to get rich are gathered in one place, but the tale is easy to understand and only takes few pages. The reading is easy, but it is chock-full of gems. If you're between 12 and 14 years old and just starting to learn about investing, money management, and entrepreneurship, this book will be a godsend. "A Dog Named Money" will save you a lot of time and money that you might have spent reading renowned financial experts who provide the same information in a more sophisticated and complex way.
2. George S. Clason's "The Richest Man in Babylon" is a well-known guide to financial literacy, money management and wealth mindset that provides a solid foundation. It's more involved than Schäfer's book, but the principles outlined in both are quite similar. "A Dog Called Money," on the other hand, is easier to understand for younger teens.
3. In the book "Rich Dad, Poor Dad" by Robert Kyosaki, the author tells his life story mixed with financial success and failure stories. The book is a powerful narrative that teaches fundamental concepts of generating and investing money and the mentality of wealth through several real-life scenarios from the author's own life. Despite claims that many events in the book are fictitious and not genuinely autobiographical, they all provide a great deal of benefit to the reader. The book is fascinating and straightforward enough to enthuse teenagers while also demonstrating the essential notion of generating money. I strongly encourage you to read this book. The "Cashflow" board game, created by Robert Kiyosaki, is even more helpful than reading this book. The game is brilliant in teaching people about investing and what true passive income entails. "Cashflow" is a popular financial education tool. I think that parents should play this game with their children as soon as they reach the age of ten to twelve years old. If you're a teenager and haven't played Cashflow, suggest it to your parents. Cashflow is not the cheapest game available, but everyone in your family and social circle will benefit from playing. Before playing Cashflow, read Kiyosaki's book to understand phrases like a rat race, passive income, liability, and more.
4. "The Little Book of Common Sense Investing: The Only Way to Guarantee Your Fair Share of Stock Market Returns" by John C. Bogle is an excellent read for teens interested in investing money. Bogle explains how to minimize stock market losses and choose a wise investing technique by teaching investing principles that can help investors avoid financial devastation. There is also a fantastic blog / forum / encyclopedia of investing to help you apply the concepts from this book. Such a knowledge base can help you get started with investments and answer a lot of your questions. If you have additional individual questions, check out the Reddit community known as "bogleheads." Just make a rule to double-check any advice you get on the Internet, and don't follow it blindly.
5. A subculture of people who advocate the "FIRE" philosophy of money management has arisen, very near to Bogle's ideas. Individuals that wish to attain Financial Independence and Retire Early (aka FIRE) are members of the FIRE movement. In this subculture, people seek to save as much money as they can from their salaries and live well beyond their means. Every dollar that is kept is invested with a few exceptions. Mr. Money Mustache, for example, is a prominent champion of the FIRE movement. He left his job at the age of 30. He created a blog where he educated individuals on achieving financial independence after six years of retirement. I urge every young person to research the FIRE concept and ask eventual questions in the FIRE community on Reddit.
6. "The Simple Path to Wealth: Your road map to financial independence and a wealthy life" by J L Collins. This book is the solution to personal finance education for anybody with no prior knowledge of investments. Financial independence is a straightforward concept, yet it is new for most individuals since they desire to retire with a pension and social security payments. This book will alter your perspective on investing money and provide you with a deeper understanding of financial independence.
7. "Antifragile" by Nassim Taleb is a challenging book to read. However, it is, without doubt, the most essential of all on this list. It explains how individuals should plan their lives to obtain real-life security. This volume is an excellent basis for comprehending the true meaning of diversification and investment. Teens must read this book and think ahead about how to build an antifragile life.
8. Budget planners can help you manage your money and stay on track with your financial objectives, whether paper or online. I like using traditional notebooks and spreadsheets on my computer since they offer more protection to my private information than even the most sophisticated apps.

How can you improve your financial literacy today?

Here is a couple of golden nuggets to start your financial literacy right now.

I urge everyone, especially young people and teenagers, to watch these two particular videos by Miles Beckler (this one and this one), one of the world's top digital marketers. He explains what wealth, financial freedom, and asset allocation are in these short videos. He is easy to understand, so watch his videos to start your financial education right now. 

Congratulations if you live in Canada! You're about to discover the most valuable information on your country's financial system. "Canadian in a T-shirt"  - a rapidly growing channel that explains things like credit card minimum payments and why you shouldn't pay the minimum, income tax brackets, bonds, shares, ETFs, etc. Also, this channel teaches the most tax-efficient investing techniques for Canadian residents.

Although this channel focuses on the Canadian financial system, many fundamental ideas apply to all. For example, how to build an investment portfolio, fund allocation, and so on. Personally, I would not follow this channel's investment advice, but I would strongly advise you to check out the videos on fundamental ideas such as credit cards or wealth creation.

READ NEXT:

10 Powerful Emotional Intelligence Activities To Raise Healthy And Successful Kids