Kids learn a lot in school, but to say it completely prepares them for life would be stretching it. A school does little to teach children about their finances or how to handle them.

If you want your child to have a healthy relationship with money and to have their best start at a bright future, you should pencil in a night to talk to them about how to manage their finances.

Here are some of the lessons you should incorporate.

Avoiding Credit Card Debt

Credit cards can submarine your child’s financial future in the blink of an eye. A month or two of irresponsible spending might take years for them to pay off – if they don’t try to sucker you into doing it for them.

Before they apply for their first credit card, which could be the day they arrive at college because credit card companies will start sending them offers at an alarming rate, you need to have a heart-to-heart talk with them. Go over the dangers of credit cards with them and spare no details. If you’ve had awful credit card debt in the past, tell them about it. Let them know it can sneak up on you quickly.

Investing for their Golden Years

Teenagers aren’t known for thinking about the future. Retirement can seem a lifetime away – and it is. But as adults, we know how quickly those years will sneak by. And before they know it, your kids will have missed out on the best investing years of their lives.

Urge them to join a 401k or start an IRA as soon as they can. Show them what the magic of compound interest will do. They’ll be intrigued to see they could be a millionaire with very little effort.

How to Pay for College

If your child is college bound, let them know how much you can afford to chip in. You don’t want them thinking you’re going to bankroll the whole thing if you’re not. And you don’t want them learning about it after they get into the school of their dreams and realize they don’t have enough money to attend.

Start talking with them about college and finances in their early high school years. They might realize a job would be in their best interest so they can start saving. Or maybe they’ll buckle down and work on their grades in the hope of getting a scholarship. The point is, they need time to come up with a workable plan.

The Dangers of Peer Pressure

Trying to keep up with their friends’ spending habits may lead to a lifetime of debt and misery for your child. Let them know that material objects won’t make them happy or make people think they’re any cooler.

What’s really cool is staying out of debt and having plenty of money for travel and a home eventually.

Why They Should Have an Emergency Fund

Don’t let your child forget about the importance of saving for a rainy day. That’s different from their retirement accounts and they need to realize it.

They should aim to save up somewhere between three to six months of expenses to handle any emergencies they could face.