Balancing act
One of the key messages to share with your teens about checking accounts is the importance of balancing them regularly. Not only does this provide an accurate reading of how much money you have, but it's the best way to avoid unnecessary fees and penalties that can quickly mount.
As an exercise, show your teen how to balance your own checking account by comparing the running balance in your check register with items listed in your monthly bank statement. Be sure to account for all deposits, withdrawals, checks written, and ATM and other fees. Let them do the math to see if they can make it balance; if not, chances are you may have accidentally forgotten to enter a transaction or made an arithmetic error in your register.