On the surface it’s a simple statement and a simple philosophy – “Save to Spend” – yet it appears to be a difficult concept for many Americans to grasp.

The trend has bothered Michelle Stizza for more than 20 years.

“Many people have negative savings rates right now,” she says.

Stizza believes the only way to reverse that trend is through education – and for her education starts at home.

Stizza has been an advocate for financial education for more two decades. She began her career as a financial educator and became president and CEO of a financial institution, serving on several task forces and boards.

She developed award-winning financial education presentations and earned a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction, further energizing her passion for financial education.

Stizza combined her educational and professional experience to create the first elementary school student-run financial institution in Kansas, which was awarded the Kansas Partners in Education Award of Excellence and was recognized by Congressman Dennis Moore.

With children developing concepts about money, saving and spending at around the tender age of 5, however, she saw an even bigger need.

“Once my son started pulling out the debit card and handing it to a cashier, I knew it was time to help parents and children further understand the basics of financial management, especially in these challenging economic times,” she says.

So she began work on a children’s book, and it was released this past April, which just happened to be National Financial Literacy Month.

The book is, naturally, called Save to Spend.

She sees the book as a financial education tool for parents, grandparents and educators.

Children ages 4-7 can follow Maximillian and Maggie as they shop for a new toy while their friend Sterling helps them discover the difference between “wants” and “needs” and the value of saving money.

“The book can be a nice opener for parents to talk to their kids about money,” Stizza says.

“It’s not always easy to do.”

She has actually been working on the book on and off for 15 years, and she is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in financial curriculum studies.

“Kids at a young age are starting to understand what the concept of money is and how it is used as an exchange for something,” she says.

“By the time kids become teenagers and are in high school, they are already committed to certain financial concepts, good or bad.”

She envisions the book as a tool that can be used by parents, teachers, financial institutions and other consumers to help talk to children about money starting at a young age.

The book’s prologue contains a simple list that explains the concept behind Save to Spend:

*Save for something you want or need.

*Save for someone special.

*Save for clothes.

*Save for someone in need.

*Save for a bike.

*Save for college.

*Save for whatever you would like.

A short parent/teacher guide explains that children can learn basis terms and concepts that will carry them forward through the complex world of money, financial planning, credit cards, interest rates and the like.

“You can help children by reading to them, bringing them shopping, and explaining everyday experiences that deal with money,” it states.

“Giving them the responsibility of saving money for a certain goal is an excellent way to get started.”

By the way, in the book, Max and Maggie discover the difference between wants and needs and the value of saving money.

In fact, they learn about decision-making and opportunity costs when Maggie decides not to spend the money on yummy candies or a computer game and instead decides to purchase her goal of buying a cat toy.

The book also includes a simple worksheet at the end where children can write down what they’d like to buy (their “goal”), total cost of that goal and what the weekly savings goal is to reach the prize.

Stizza says Save to Spend is the first in a series of books about money for children.

Her company is Financial Education Resource Company. Visit www.fied.org or www.savetospend.org for more information or to purchase the book.