Playing board games with your family is a traditional part of the festive period. Often, this will involve opening one that has been given as a gift to your children, or bringing out an old favourite that everyone enjoys playing.
Alongside traditional family favourites such as Cluedo and Trivial Pursuit, there are a range of money-related board games containing useful financial planning lessons that you and your family could benefit from.
So, if you want to help with the financial education of your children, and maybe brush up on your own, here are five board games for you to play over the festive period that contain some key monetary lessons.
1. Monopoly: “Do not pass go, do not collect £200”
If you can excuse the pun, Monopoly is still the gold standard against which other board games are measured.
It has entered everyday conversation, with phrases such as the heading above, and a “get out of jail free card” often used in common parlance.
Although the roots of the game can be traced to 1903, the version we recognise today was invented in the US in the 1930s. Even now, it is still teaching players basic money management and cashflow principles as they move around the board, buying and developing real estate.
As well as a range of different editions, it has inspired any number of spin-offs, a TV game show, and books. According to Deadline, there is even a film version in the pipeline.
Once the fight over who gets to be the sports car has been settled, Monopoly can teach children lessons about basic money management, including:
- The importance of balancing expenditure
- The different values of property
- Why having an emergency fund of cash is crucial.
After all, you may own a row of properties in sought-after locations, but you still need to pay taxes and run the risk of drawing an unlucky “Chance” card.
2. Teach your children about wealth accumulation with Cashflow
Derived from a best-selling book, Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki, Cashflow was deliberately created as an entertaining and accessible way to teach children the basics of building wealth and investing.
As well as being fun for people of all ages to play, it also provides some unexpectedly revealing insights about your personal financial habits.
At the start of the game, you are in a standard nine-to-five job. The challenge is to then acquire sufficient assets, such as shares and property, so that you are in a position to really start building your wealth.
From a financial education perspective, it can help you teach your children about the different types of income including earnings, investment returns, and that derived from property and other assets.
3. Pay Day replicates the reality of a monthly salary and financial challenges
In terms of learning about the reality of day-to-day finances, budgeting, and living expenses, there are arguably few games better than Pay Day.
For one thing, the action takes place on a calendar with you receiving your salary at the end of each month, just like in real life.
You are then faced with unexpected events that can either propel you forward or test your financial resilience. There are even realistic features such as overspending on the monthly food shop.
To advance, you have to borrow money to purchase property. Then, as your income increases and you have managed to save, you can start to invest in stocks and shares.
Compared to other games, the financial lessons your children will glean from playing Pay Day cover the very basics of financial responsibility and managing your money.
4. The Game of Life takes you on a journey from young adulthood to retirement
A variation of The Game of Life dates back to 1860, although the recognisable modern version was launched 100 years later.
As the name suggests, the game takes you on a journey from being a young adult to a retired person. Along the way, you face up to many of the milestones and challenges people encounter throughout their lifetime, including earning a salary, marriage, balancing income and outgoings, and much more.
Each player decides on the lifestyle they want to follow, and then goes on the journey that choice takes them on.
Because of that, it is one of the best games to help introduce your children to the realities of managing money on a regular basis, as well as the effect of different long-term decisions.
Once everyone reaches the end of the game at retirement, you pay off your debts and add up your total wealth. The player with the most money wins the game.
5. Acquire includes valuable lessons about investment and property purchase
Designed in the US, although very much available and popular here in the UK, Acquire is a high-finance game of speculation and strategic thinking.
As the name suggests, it is all about acquisition, with specific reference to real estate in general and hotel chains in particular.
As you watch your own business grow, you can use your accrued value to purchase shares in rival companies, with the winner being the person with the greatest wealth at the end.
Clearly, the lessons younger people will learn playing Acquire will relate to buying and selling stocks in order to get the greatest return on your investments.
One point to be aware of with regard to Acquire is that you need to be slightly older to appreciate it than the other games here, with the distributors suggesting a minimum age of 12. Of course, there is nothing to stop you from teaming up with a younger child.
Get in touch
If playing one of these board games over the festive period prompts you have to questions about managing your wealth, then please do get in touch with us at DBL Asset Management.
Email enquiries@dbl-am.com or call 01625 529 499 to speak to us today.
Please note
This blog is for general information only and does not constitute advice. The information is aimed at retail clients only.
