Penny's Corner

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How Does a Bank Work?

A bank is not just a storage place for money! A bank provides many services: checking accounts, savings accounts, loans to buy things like cars and houses, and much more. The bank holds your money in safe place until you need it.

Did you know that banks pay you to keep your money in their accounts? That’s right! If you put your money in a savings account, the bank will pay you a small amount which is called interest.

A bank can also lend money to people who needs to buy something big like a boat or house. When someone borrows money from a bank, they must pay all the money back over time plus a little extra. This is also called interest.

Earning Money

In order to buy the things that we like, we have to have money. Your parents go to work and that company or person pays them for the time that they worked. This is called earning money. You can do things to earn money too!

You can cut grass, take out the trash, walk your neighbor’s dog, or have a lemonade stand to earn money. You’ll feel good when you are paid for your hard work. Once you have earned your money, you’ll have to decide how to spend it.

Spending, Sharing, Savings

Once you earn money, you have the choice to either spend, save, or share it. I like to do a little of all three!

Spend – Spending money may seem like the most fun option. When you spend money, you give a person or store money in exchange for something like a toy or game. It’s important to remember that in order to purchase something, you need the money. If you want to buy something that costs more than you have, you will need to save.

Save – You can also save your money! Have you ever had to save for something that you really wanted? Sure, it was hard to save up but I bet it felt awesome when you finally got to buy what you wanted! Saving money helps you to save up for the future too!

Share – You could also share a little your money with a worthy cause that means a lot to you. For example, if you like animals you can donate a few dollars to the animal shelter to help them care for animals.

When I earn my money from working at the bank, I like to do a little bit of all three. I spend a little on myself, save a little in my savings account, and then share a little to help animals.

Budget

A budget is a tool for thinking about where your money comes from and where it goes. This helps you to know how much you can spend, save, and share.

To make a budget, write how much money you will earn on one side (income) and how much you want to spend, save, and share on the other (expenses).

Needs and Wants

It's important to know the difference between a need and a want so that you can spend your hard earned money wisely!

"Needs" are the things you need to live like water, food, clothes, and shelter. "Wants" are the things you would like to have but don't need to survive. Wants could be things like books, movies, toys, and games.

When you make your budget, you should spend your money on your needs first, and then worry about the wants with the money that is left over.

Can you spot the needs and the wants in the list below?

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