American Express and Jean Chatzky have joined forces to establish a href=http://moneynighttalk.com>Money Night Talk. Their goal is to find the holes in financial education that need to be filled – and then to go about filling them on September 16, 2010. That’s when they holding what they hope will be the first of many National Money Night Talks.

What’s a Money Night Talk? Just what it sounds like – a time that parents commit to sitting down in person (or on the phone or IM or Skype) and having a conversation about the things both parents and kids say are most important to them.

In the case of parents those are the value of money (79%), the importance of saving (77%) and living within a budget (77%). Kids had a slightly different take: the importance of saving (76%) ranked first, followed by getting a job (75%) and the value of money (72%). The cost of college, interestingly, was the one factor that ranked much higher on the kids survey (with 60% ranking it as among the most important things to talk about) than on the parents’ (44%) survey. Conversely, preparing for financial independence, managing debt and living on less than you make, ranked much higher with parents than they did with kids.

They have created three free tool kits, one for middle school children, one for those with high school kids, and one for those whose kids are in college, along with corresponding videos. Each was created to adhere to the core curriculum standards set by the not-for-profit Council on Economic Education (CEE). (The tool kits have been endorsed by the CEE which is suggesting that the states and teachers in its network spread the word about Money Night.)

Among the items in the middle school tool kit, you’ll find an exercise about setting financial goals, a discussion guide to family bills (have you ever thought about how much we pay for things like cable and internet?), and a section on allowances. In the high school kit, there are questions and answers about paying for college and where that money is likely to come from, talking points about whether it’s the right time to get a job, and a guide to figuring out the best way to pay – credit, debit, cash, charge – for different things.

In the college kit, there’s a section on setting and sticking to a budget when you’re away at school, talking points on avoiding identity theft, and information about credit scores, why they’re important and how to keep yours strong.

You’ll find all of these resources at Money Night Talk along with instructions asking you to pledge to have this important conversation with your kids on September 16.