Dave Ramsey Extols The Virtues Of Early Childhood Education, Saying Every Child Should Know 'Debt Is Dumb, Cash Is King'

Dave Ramsey, the personal finance expert, is known for his hard-hitting and blunt financial advice. This time, his advice is geared around some important early childhood education topics. Here are the seven things that Ramsey feels every child should hear. 

While Ramsey may be an expert in handling money, he's also pretty qualified regarding children because he has his own children, albeit they're all grown up now. Ramsey and his wife, Sharon, have three adult children: Denise, Rachel, and Daniel. Rachel Cruze is also a finance expert and often joins her father on the Ramsey Show. At the same time, Daniel works alongside his father as president of Ramsey Solutions. Hence, it's pretty fair to say that Ramsey and his wife have raised successful children, and Ramsey’s advice regarding early childhood education is valuable. 

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In a written post shared on the social media platform X, Ramsey listed seven things that he believes all children need to hear, and the first thing is "I love you." The second thing you should say to your children is, "I support you," and thirdly, "I am listening." U.S. News reported that a psychology professor at the Stanford University Graduate School of Education, Geoffrey Cohen, believes that positive affirmations can do wonders for children's learning ability, among other things. 

For Cohen, positive affirmations like Ramsey's fourth point, "I believe in you," are more than empty praise. Instead, Cohen explained, "It’s not me as a parent telling my kids you are so smart, you are so wonderful," and added, "Instead me as a parent molding the situation in ways that my kids can exemplify who they are and feel value." U.S. News also reported that Omar Gudiño, a clinical child psychologist, feels that affirmations from parents and teachers "bolster a student’s sense of self-confidence." 

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The fifth thing that Ramsey believes children need to hear is something more finance-related and right up his wheelhouse. He wrote, "Debt is dumb, cash is king, and the paid-off home mortgage has replaced the BMW as the status symbol of choice." This is an important one for Ramsey, who has long advocated for teaching your children about responsibly handling money. When it comes to handling money, Ramsey believes that money should not be a taboo subject and that children should not be sheltered from financial matters. 

In a blog post shared with Ramsey Solutions, he cited a 2017 T. Rowe Price survey that found that 69% of parents are reluctant to talk about money to their children. For Ramsey, the solution for this is to start slow and be honest. This is something that many parents struggle with, especially when faced with questions from their kids about paying for college. During an episode of the Ramsey Show, Ramsey received a call from a man asking whether he is required to pay for his kid's college education. 

Ramsey had told him, "I don't believe it's a requirement that all parents pay for college for their kids." He added, "You don't have a moral responsibility to pay for your kids' college education. However, you have a moral responsibility to highlight the importance of knowledge." In addition to being honest about money with their children, Ramsey encourages parents to set family goals, let their children sit in on the family meetings, and contribute to the budget within reason. 

Ramsey believes that all children need to hear the following from parents, teachers, and other leading figures: "I am here for you" and "You matter." 

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