Fewer than 1 in 5 surveyed teens think they are very well prepared for their financial futures. Ouch!

However, 82% of BillMyParents SpendSmart MasterCard card holders reported learning MORE about money and financial topics in the last year.

How much money do parents say their teens spend per week? How many teens know how to budget?

Learn answers to these questions and other interesting tidbits about Teens & Money in our illuminating infographic below.

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1. Get an early start.

It is important for parents to get their children comfortable with managing their own money while they are young. This includes identifying needs versus wants, and learning how to set and manage budgets – as well as how to track their own spending. The sooner parents give their children a chance to manage money, the sooner they can begin to instill important skills and responsible behaviors that last a lifetime.

2. Discuss spending decisions immediately.

While teaching teens how to set goals and manage budgets is important, it’s just as important for parents to teach day-to-day spending management. Teens are bombarded with marketing messages and peer pressure – these potential pitfalls only increase as they get older. Addressing spending decisions in real-time allows parents to reinforce smart spending habits while memories are fresh.

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How much did you get as an allowance when you were a kid? Have you been thinking about or already give weekly or monthly allowances to your children? About.com has an easy allowance calculator that’s free and quick to use. You can plug in the numbers you already allot to your children or use it as a reference to help you decide how much to start giving as an allowance. The tool gives an allowance amount recommendation based on the child’s age, as well as how much today’s recommended allowance was worth when the parent was that age. (Purchasing power is figured using the Consumer Price Index.)

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Savvy adults know that using a budget to track income and expenses is the best way to manage money, make sure bills are covered and to set aside funds for the finer things in life. But we can’t forget to give our children the building blocks for good personal financial habits, and that includes teaching teens how money works in the real world. eHow gives you 7 tips to help arm your teens well before they venture out on their own, from explaining how banks and credit cards work to establishing a budget and working with them to set realistic money goals.

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Experts believe that parents should teach the fundamentals (and more!) of financial responsibility to their children as they transition into their teenage years and then into adulthood. Providing your teens with the tools and knowledge to successfully strategize and manage their money, and making them aware of common financial pitfalls many young adults fall into are some of the best lessons you can pass on to them.

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We all know the benefits of actively communicating with our kids, and it’s even more important when a family is going through the strain of tough financial times. In light of the current economic landscape, the editors at iVillage called in some experts to weigh in on how to handle talking with your children when your family faces major changes including job loss, divorce, moving to a smaller home, vacation cancellation and more.

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We found a handy household budget worksheet created by Kiplinger that’s both free and easy to use. It’s detailed but straight-forward and was designed to help you “get on top of your monthly living costs by projecting expenditures in various categories, and then comparing those projections to what you actually spend.” After you enter your projected expense figures, print out the sheet, keep track of your expenditures over the next month for each line item, and then return to the site and plug in both sets of numbers. It does the calculations for you and you can see how the projected and actual numbers compare.

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Some teens are impressively responsible with their money, enjoy the merits of saving and carefully consider before making any purchases. But what if your teen doesn’t comprehend the effects of loose spending habits, and routinely squanders his or her allowance or other earnings on careless buys?

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