Candy Tax: 3 Steps to learn about taxes

Short of waiting for that first paycheck, how can parents teach their small children about taxes? The BT Moms like to use Halloween to teach an impactful lesson in taxation.

Step 1. Trick or Treat!

Geared up in their princess/zombie/football player finest, our kids canvass the neighborhood amassing their Halloween loot. Once they are home from their trick-or-treating, sugared up and exhausted, we spread out the candy to examine their earnings.

Step 2. Show them what tax would mean

Once we have the candy all lined up, we carefully carve out about ¼ of their stash (the average taxpayer gives about 24% of his earnings to the government!) and tell them…

“Imagine if Mom and Dad took away this much candy from your stash. Just like you worked hard to earn all of this candy, when Mom and Dad get a paycheck with all of our earned dollars, the government might take out about this much each month. That money goes to pay for all of the services our government provides, like paying your teachers, fixing our roads or keeping our fire station running.”

Step 3. Let it Sink In

While we might not actually take the candy tax (though we are not above swiping a post-bedtime Snickers bar!), the lesson here is meaningful. Kids can get a sense for how it feels when something they’ve “earned” gets taken away in the name of the greater good. This is the definition of taxes and a great lesson for kids.

As our main man Ben Franklin said, “in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” While these might not be choice words for our kindergarteners, there is no doubt that parents need to prep our children to learn about the inevitability of tax.

By looking at sales tax on a receipt for a new pair of sneakers, showing income tax on a sample paycheck or pointing out how our property taxes help pay for local services, parents can take the taboo out of taxes and give their kids a jump start on their financial fitness.

Want a deeper dive on how to talk to your kiddos about all things taxes? (Sounds fun, right?), check out our article on Taxes 101.