by Alison Storm | 03/30/10

Having a tough time explaining credit cards to your kids? Teach them important money lessons with games. Fox Business introduces us to several kid-friendly games that teach children about money while they're having fun. "Kids only see the spending side of credit cards, which makes them look like easy money," says board game creator and personal finance co-author Sharon Lechter. Lechter created the game Thrive Time which is geared towards teens. Players start off with part-time jobs and $500 incomes, then they're forced to make money decisions like buying cars, donating to charities and using credit cards.

Another game Fox Business suggests checking out is called Beat Debt. The object of the game is use your disposable income to make investments and pay off credit card debt. The first player to pay off their debt and invest $5,000 wins. This game is great for kids over the age of ten.

For an online option, kids can check out Celebrity Calamity. Players take over the finances for demanding stars living beyond their means. They have to decide how much money to put towards credit card debt without making the celebrity angry. Brett Barnes uses the game to work with youth in the foster care system. "Celebrity Calamity gives our youth the opportunity to be exposed to a longer-term financial outlook as so many of our foster care youth are sheltered from credit card knowledge and money management techniques," he told Fox Business. "I learned that you can't put everything on a credit card, it's not free money and you need to be cautious," says Elias Ferrer, an 11-year-old boy in Federal Way, Wash., after playing Celebrity Calamity.

Right now only three states, Utah, Missouri and Tennessee, require high school classes on financial responsibility. "Teens don't know what APR (annual percentage rate) means, how credit card fees are assessed or how irresponsible use of credit cards can limit future choices," says Mechel Glass, director of education for Consumer Credit Counseling Services in Atlanta and creator of two financial games. So games like these can help teach lessons that won't be taught in the classroom.