BUFFALO, N.Y., BALTIMORE and HARRISBURG, Pa., April 12, 2011 -- What do a piggy bank, car insurance, and a hammer have in common? They're all practical tools for teaching children about the value of money in our daily lives, and just a few of the examples used by M&T Bank employees volunteering their time at schools teaching children the importance of saving during National Financial Literacy Month.
From kindergarten to high school, students are learning valuable life lessons about money from M&T Bank employees, who are presenting financial literacy lessons to nearly 2,500 students in almost 100 classrooms across three states. The lessons include games and activities to make the presentations both fun and educational. The lesson plans are tailored to the various grade levels, so materials and concepts are understandable for each age group.
Children often know more about spending money than why it is important to save it. Money management is a vital skill each person should learn, and the earlier children learn the basic concepts of why and how to save money, the better their financial skills are later in life.
"Financial literacy is not an optional skill," said M&T Bank President Mark Czarnecki. "Solid financial skills are essential along all the milestones in life, from college to career, and marriage to retirement. Teaching the importance of saving at a young age is an investment that lasts generations."
M&T Bank offers the following tips to help parents and teachers promote good saving habits to children:
- Make saving observable (e.g. putting change in a jar helps establish the concept of saving)
- Teach children the difference between "needs" and "wants"
- Explain the importance of saving on energy by turning off lights and electronics
- Help kids open their own bank savings accounts and make deposits regularly
President Barack Obama declared April as National Financial Literacy Month. Additionally, the American Bankers Association has been organizing the annual Teach Children to Save Day for the past 15 years, and is being held on April 12, 2011.
Financial education is an ongoing commitment at M&T and our bankers visit schools and community groups throughout the year to share their knowledge on financial issues like budgeting, saving for college, and homeownership.
To invite a banker from M&T to your school or group to talk about financial literacy, go online to www.mtb.com/newsroom, then go to the Social Responsibility page and click on "Community Reinvestment" to contact your local Community Reinvestment officer.
Below is a list of schools that M&T Bank volunteers are visiting during National Financial Literacy Month:
New York
African Road Elementary, Vestal
Fassett Elementary, Elmira
Herkimer Area Resource Center, Herkimer
Highland Elementary, Derby
Holmes Road Elementary, Rochester
Homer Brink Elementary, Endwell
McKinley High School, Buffalo
Riverside High School, Buffalo
Roberts Elementary, Syracuse
Roxboro Road Elementary, Syracuse
Westminster Charter School, Buffalo
World of Inquiry School, Rochester
Pennsylvania
Archbishop Ryan High School, Philadelphia
Bloomsburg Memorial Elementary School, Bloomsburg
Blue Mountain High School, Schuylkill Haven
Calvary Lutheran Preschool, Dover
Camp Curtin Elementary, Harrisburg
Centerville Elementary, Lancaster
Cornwall Elementary, Lebanon
Cornwall Terrace Elementary, Sinking Spring
Fairview Elementary, Mountain Top
Green Ridge Elementary, Mechanicsburg
Hill-Freedman Middle School, Philadelphia
Lincolnway Elementary, York
Mahanoy Area Elementary, Mahanoy City
The Nativity School, Harrisburg
Northeast Bradford Elementary, Rome
Paradise Elementary, Thomasville
Park Elementary School, Columbia
Rolling Acres Elementary, Littlestown
Taylor Elementary, Columbia
St. Veronica Elementary School, Philadelphia
Shrewsbury Elementary, Shrewsbury
South Lebanon Elementary, Lebanon
West Beaver Elementary, McClure
Maryland
Dundalk Middle School, Baltimore
Francis Scott Key Technology Magnet School #76, Baltimore
Hancock Elementary School, Hancock
Holy Angels Catholic School, Baltimore
John Ruhrah Elementary/Middle School, Baltimore
M&T Bank, founded in 1856, is one of the top 20 independent commercial bank holding companies in the nation, with $68 billion in assets and more than 725 branch offices in New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Jersey, Delaware, Virginia, West Virginia, the District of Columbia, and Ontario, Canada. Read more about M&T Bank online at www.mtb.com/newsroom.
For further information:
New York
Chet Bridger
(716)842-5182
Pennsylvania
Kent Wissinger
(717)237-6110
Maryland, D.C., Virginia, Delaware
Phil Hosmer
(410)949-3042
