by Jesse Mecham
I wrote a few weeks about about a book I thought First Son might use for Personal Finance (in tenth grade, though I might move it to ninth grade for later students). The more I thought about it, the more I wondered if it was really want I wanted. Frankly I was uncomfortable with aspects of the book that focus on maximizing profit in investing in our current economic system and with its defense of wealth accumulation. There were a few chapters that just seemed unnecessary for a high schooler. (Not unexpected as it wasn't written for high schoolers.) So I was keeping my eyes open for an alternative and found this on the library shelf of new books.
You Need a Budget focuses on how to budget with the money you have for the expenses you know you will have. It's the outgrowth of a budgeting website and app available on a subscription basis, but the book itself is beneficial independent of the service. Though not written for high school students, I think it gives a good idea of how to handle personal finances. First Son already does this sort of thing for his finances now, but this book will push him to think ahead to budgeting when he is responsible for more expenses.
There is a chapter on talking with your "partner" about managing household finances and goals. The information is reasonably good, but as the book is written for the millennial generation, it does not assume marriage (and frankly gives many examples of couples who are not married). I talked to Kansas Dad about it and we decided our high school students could still read the book, but it's good to be aware in case you prefer to choose a different option for your family.
I intend to pair this book with other resources like an article on investing showing how compound interest builds if you begin investing early. Retirement accounts of investments in stocks seem inevitable for at least the near future, so I want him to understand about investing when he's young. I am also, however, planning for him to read a number of essays by Wendell Berry and parts of Small Is Still Beautiful to help him question the status quo and consider what role economics might play in a society that strives to build the Kingdom of God. All of this will be in addition to the economics book he'll use as a text over the next two years but the personal finance part should be fairly easy so I think he won't be overwhelmed.
