Financial Expert Shares Tips to Help Teens Learn Money Management Through Summer Jobs

In this March 5, 2012, file photo, consumer credit cards are displayed in North Andover, Massachusetts. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola, File)

AUSTIN (KXAN) — For the first time in more than a decade, the number of teens working summer jobs hit a 14-year high.

The latest figures show that in total, more than 6 million American teenagers (36.6%) had a paid summer job.

This is the highest teen summer employment rate since 2008, according to an analysis of data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Pew Research Center.

“I have six kids, all six have left the nest,” said financial planner Gregg Murset. “And they all had over $10,000 saved before they left. This is a mind-boggling amount to me.

For the Murset family, financial education began at home with paid work.

“We always need to do something in our house, to do household chores. Don't just let them sit and wait for someone to call them back, pursue it. And let them do things in your house, earn money, and then practice with it.

Murset, co-founder of Busy Kid, teaches parents how to teach their children about money management.

He suggests a balanced financial approach for teens, much like what working adults do with their paychecks.

“It's so easy. You share the money. Some of that money goes toward saving and investing. You share some of it with charity…then you spend the rest and you do it with a map.

Emphasize the word card and not cash.

“Gone are the days when we could give them cash and they put it in their piggy bank, in jars, in envelopes or something like that. We have to throw everything away and use technology, they are good at it. They like it. It makes sense for them to use it.

Financial acumen by learning how to manage money from a young age.

“Teach them earlier. Let them practice, let them get good at it.