Everyone knows that our school system ， in general ， is not giving
our kids the basic reading， writing，‘rithmatic and science skills needed
to be competitive in the high-tech workforce of the upcoming generation
（at least， that ’s the general assumption， and we won ‘t argue it
here）。

    總的來說，我們都知道學校不能教給我們的孩子一些基本的讀書，寫作，算
術和科學技能，這些技能是我們在即將出現的新一代高科技勞動力（至少，這是
一個普遍的看法，我們不需要在這里爭論）中具有競爭力的保證。

    But there ‘s much more to life than those basic subjects ， and unless
you have an exceptional teacher who is willing to break out of the mold
，your child isn ’t learning the crucial things he or she needs to learn
in life.但是生活中我們需要遠比那些基礎學科更多的知識，你的孩子根本沒有
學會生活中需要的那些至關重要的知識，除非有一位獨特的老師，他愿意去打破
這種模式。

    Think about your own experience for a moment. When you got out of
high school ， did you know everything you needed in order to survive
in life ， let alone succeed？ If you were lucky， you knew how to read
and had some basic history and math skills， and if you were even luckier，
you had good study habits that would serve you well in college. 回顧你
的切身經驗，當你高中畢業時，你了解生活中的所需知識么？更不用說如何取得
成功了。幸運的話，你也許知道如何閱讀，并且有一些基本的歷史和數學技能，
甚至你還可能擁有良好的學習習慣，這將使你在大學中受益。

    But were you prepared for life？ Most likely not， unless you had
parents who did you that favor. In fact ， many of us screwed up our early
adult lives because we didn ‘t know those skills — and we ’re paying
the consequences now. 但是，你真的準備好進入現實生活了么？也許未必，除
非你的父母已經為你準備好一切。事實上，我們大部分人的早期成年生活都是一
團糟，因為我們不了解所需的技能，而我們正在承受相應的后果。

    That‘s a part of life， you might say， learning these lessons. But
it’s also possible to prepare your child a bit before they go out on
their own ， and if we can‘t get the schools to teach these skills ，
then let’s do it ourselves.你也許會說，這是生活的一部分——從經驗教訓
中學習。但仍可能在你的孩子獨立生活之前，讓他準備得充分一些。如果我們無
法讓學校教授那些技能，就讓我們自己來負責吧。

    What follows is a basic curriculum in life that a child should know
before reaching adulthood. There will probably be other skills you can
add to this list， but at least it‘s a starting point. 以下是一張基本
課程表，孩子在邁入成年生活之前都應該掌握它。也許你認為還有其他技能需要
加入其中，但至少這是一個起步要求。

    A note on how to teach these things ： These subjects should not be
taught by lectures or textbooks. They can only be taught by setting examples，
by conversation ， by showing ， and by allowing the child（or teenager）

    to do these things on their own （with supervision at first ）。 Once
you ‘ve talked about the skill ， showed your child how to do it ， and
let them do it under supervision a few times， give your child the trust
to do it on his own ， and to learn from his own mistakes. Check back
every now and then to talk about what he’s learned.如何教導這些事情：
這些課程無法通過講課和課本來掌握，只能通過實例、言傳身教來教導，并且要
允許小孩獨自去嘗試（剛剛開始可以在監督下進行）。一旦你進行言傳身教，并
且監督他們嘗試幾次后，就應該給予你的孩子信任，讓他自己去完成，從自身的
錯誤中學習；另外要不時和你的孩子討論他的學習成果。

    Financial 財務

    * Saving. Spend less than you earn. It‘s such a simple maxim ， and
yet very few young adults understand it or know how to follow it. Teach
your child from a young age to put part of money he receives or earns
in the bank. Teach him how to set a savings goal， and save for it， and
then purchase whatever it is he was saving for. 儲蓄：量入為出是一句簡
樸的格言，然而只有極少數的青年人理解并知道如何遵循它。從小就讓孩子將他
的一部分零花錢存入銀行，教導他如何設定儲蓄目標，如何達成該目標，然后便
可購買他想要的物品。

    * Budgeting. Many of us dread this task as adults ， and suffer because
of it ， because we lack the understanding and skills necessary to make
budgeting a breeze. Teach them simple budgeting skills， and what ‘s
involved， and they won ’t have problems as an adult. You could wait
until teenage years to do something like this — but it ‘s a good thing
because this shows them why basic math is necessary.預算：許多成年人害
怕做預算，并為此飽受折磨，這是因為我們缺乏做預算所需的知識和技能。教導
孩子簡單的預算技能，以及相關的知識，讓他們成年后不在面臨預算的煩惱。你
可以等到孩子十幾歲再教他們這些知識，這是一個很好的機會來展示為什么他們
需要了解數學基礎知識。

    * Paying bills. Give them bills to pay and have them pay it on time
，online or in the real world. Learn how to write a check， paper and online，
and how to make sure that you ‘re never late with bills again— either
pay them immediately or automatically.支付：讓孩子們支付賬單，并確保他
們按時支付，不論是在線支付還是實地完成。讓他們學習如何寫支票，包括紙張
支票和在線支票；確保不會延誤賬單——可以通過馬上支付或者自動支付來完成。

    * Investing. What is investing and why is it necessary？ How do you
do it and what are different ways of doing it ？ How do you research an
investment？ How does it compound over time ？ This is a good conversation
to have with your teen. 投資：什么是投資，為什么必須進行投資？你是如何
進行投資的，有哪些不同的投資手段？你是如何研究投資項目？復利如何發揮時
間威力。這些都是和你孩子交談的極佳話題。

    * Frugality. This is something to teach them from an early age. How
to shop around to get a good deal ， to compare between products of different
prices and quality， to make things last and not waste， to cook at home
instead of eating out too much， to control impulse buying. When we go
out and do a shopping spree ， including before Christmas ， we are teaching
them just the opposite. 節�。哼@是從小就應該教會他們的事情。如何去貨比
三家，比較不同的價格和質量，對物品重復利用、減少浪費，在家煮食而不過多
在外就餐，控制購物沖動。當我們外出瘋狂購物，即便是圣誕節前，也會為孩子
樹立了一個壞榜樣。

    * Credit. This is a major problem for many adults. Teach them the
responsible use for credit， and how to avoid it when it‘s not necessary，
and how to avoid getting into too much debt ， and how to use a credit
card responsibly. 債務：許多成年人都面臨債務問題。要教導孩子借貸的責任，
如何避免不必要的債務，如何避免過多舉債，如何可靠地使用信用卡。

    * Retirement. Is it better to work hard and retire or to take mini-retirements
throughout life ？ That ‘s a personal question ， but your child should
be aware of the options and the pros and cons of each ， and how to do
each. Why it’s important to start investing in retirement when you ‘
re young， and how much of a difference that can make through compound
interest. How to do it automatically. 退休：努力工作到退休年齡，還是
“迷你退休”（即工作一段時間，享受一段時間），哪種更好？這是見仁見智的
問題，但是你的孩子應該知曉有這些選擇，它們的利弊所在，以及如何具體實施。

    告訴你的孩子年輕時候就開始投資的重要性，復利所帶來的巨大差別，以及
如何讓投資自動化。

    * Charity. Why this is an important use of your money ， and how to
make it a regular habit. This should be not only a financial issue， but
a social one. Show them how to volunteer their time and effort as well.
慈善：告訴孩子從事慈善的重要性，以及如何養成做慈善的習慣。這不僅僅是一
個財務問題，也是一種社會活動。你應示范如何將時間與精力投入到慈善活動中。