In a world where bills and coins have been replaced by numbers on a screen, it's essential for parents to actively teach financial lessons instead of just letting kids watch, finance blogger Dawn Cher says. When I was a child, I often saw my mum at the dining table with a stack of bills, carefully working out our household's monthly budget. Most of her shopping for clothes or bags took place during the Great Singapore Sale, and I never once saw her opening her wallet for branded goods.