Plano Library Speaks: Podcast Episode #10

Welcome to Plano Library Speaks, the podcast of Plano Public Library!

In this episode, your hosts, Rachel and Bob chat about financial literacy, and everything the library offers to work on your money smart skills from little kids through adults.

From July 13-August 24, Plano Public Library is hosting the Thinking Money for Kids exhibit at Haggard Library. Thinking Money for Kids strives to teach children ages 7 to 11 and their parents, caregivers and educators about financial literacy topics — like saving, spending and budgeting — in a way that is not only understandable, but fun.

Thinking Money for Kids is a museum-quality exhibition traveling to 50 U.S. public libraries between 2019 and 2022. Through a bustling community market-themed storyline, digital interactive content and other fun, hands-on activities, the exhibition explores topics like earning money, saving and spending, and making responsible financial decisions. Thinking Money for Kids is brought to communities nationwide by the FINRA Investor Education Foundation and the American Library Association (ALA) Public Programs Office.

In an interview with Kristin Linscott, Development Coordinator, and Robert Ganem, FINRA Investor Education Foundation, we discuss what the Thinking Money for Kids exhibit is and what resources are available from FINRA.

FINRA tools available through their website include:

Personal Finance education, including information on setting financial goals, controlling spending and managing debt
Tools and calculators, including market data and retirement estimator
Investing education, including courses, choosing an investment professional and young adults and investing
BrokerCheck, a free tool to research the background and experience of financial brokers, advisors and firms

Librarian Sarah O’Pella talks on the podcast about library programs that target money smart skills. You can see the schedule in the library’s Engage brochure or on the Money Smart page of our website. Here are a few upcoming financial literacy programs:

Art Shop (All Ages)
What can you create with $5.00? Browse our art shop for supplies to make your masterpiece! With play money received at the store entrance, purchase paper, markers, glue and scissors, and specialty supplies to make your work of art spectacular.

Haggard, Wednesday, July 13 at 6pm

Haggard, Wednesday, August 24 at 6pm

Counting Coins (Grades K-5)
Explore hands-on activities that strengthen your child’s knowledge of counting and money

Schimelpfenig, Wednesday, August 10 at 6pm

Art of Money (All Ages)
Get ready for money-making mania as we explore what money looks like around the world and then create your own currency designs. Who will you put on your currency?

Davis, Saturday, August 20 at 3pm

FIT (JR) Financial Intelligence Training for Teens (Teen)
College students from the University of North Texas show teens how to set goals, make spending plans, manage credit and debt and plan for the future. Receive a Financial Intelligence Training (JR) certificate upon completion

Haggard, Friday, July 22 at 2pm

Building Wealth – Beginner’s Guide to Securing Your Financial Future (Adult, Teen)
You can create personal wealth and meet your financial goals by using basic concepts and taking control of your financial choices to launch you towards the future you want

Virtual, Tuesday, July 26 from 7-8:30pm – Register here

Library Manager Cecily Ponce de Leon talks about the many ways in which Plano Public Library has shared the program and reading resources library staff have created back to the library profession.

Art Shop, one of the many financial literacy program the library offers, was part of the reason why the City of Plano won the 2019 City Livability Award from the U.S. Conference of Mayors. Information about this program was included in Rainy Day Ready: Financial Literacy Programs and Tools, which is a ready-to-use guide for offering financial literacy initiatives at a library, published by ALA.

In April 2022, the American Library Association (ALA), in collaboration with the FINRA Investor Education Foundation (FINRA Foundation), released Thinking Money for All Kids: Diverse and Inclusive Reads to Teach Young People about Money, a free resource for library workers. Cecily was one of many library staff who contributed to this title, which you can read more about and download from the ALA website.

The last interview is with Kristin Linscott and Lyn Haralson, a Financial Education Program Analyst with Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (cfpb). cfpb has a variety of resources available for consumers. Here are some useful pages on their website, especially for kids learning about money:

Learn about the building blocks of financial capability

Financial literacy activities for kids of all ages

Money As You Grow resources

Tools and Resources on a variety of topics

Financial Well-being Assessment