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Please Touch Museum Talks Money With Kids

Bombarding your child with a bunch of numbers and explanations about the banking system may cause drowsiness and lead to confusion. However, teaching kids the value of money and how to save can lead to them growing up to be financially responsible adults.

The Please Touch Museum and PNC Bank teamed up to create a fun space where kids can learn about fiscal responsibility in a friendly play setting. Getting to the Please Touch Museum is easy, especially if you download the free GoPhillyGo Android app or save the mobile site to your iPhone. SEPTA bus route 38 stops at the front entrance and the museum is accessible to other SEPTA routes in the Parkside neighborhood and West Fairmount park.

Cents and Sensibility invites children to learn about money and what to do with it through engaging, interactive stations. Each station highlights a different concept of finance through written descriptions and uses a play aspect to engage children. Kids can balance play coins against a play dollar to see how many cents make one dollar at  “Dollar and Cents”. Play “Investment Plinko” to learn risk and see whether your investment chip lands on profit or loss.

According to Joe Meterchick, Regional President of Philadelphia, Delaware, and Southern New Jersey, PNC has been working to educate people about financial responsibility through targeted outreach for 15 years. He believes teaming up with the Please Touch Museum is a great partnership. “It’s a perfect combination,” said Meterchick. “Please Touch Museum wants to bring all the diversity of the community in.”

Another station titled the “Money Maze” teaches the concepts of spend, save, and share. Children move a “money ball” through a maze with different outcomes depending on what they do with their money. This activity also teaches kids to volunteer their time or give to charities when they have extra time and money. “It’s not just how you make money, or how you value money, but if you have a little extra, how you can share it to help somebody else too.”

Discussing money isn’t always an easy conversation for families, and Meterchick hopes this new space will engage kids and adults looking to learn some good financial practices when planning for the future. “Talking about money isn’t the easiest thing to do. We created an exhibit where (families) can come in and start to have a little fun with this,” said Meterchick. “Interestingly, the parents may learn too.”