In Visa U.S.A.’s annual back-to-school survey, 54 percent of parents said they would use the traditional late-summer shopping season to teach their children basic money-management skills.

I thought I would do some teaching myself. Today’s lesson focuses on what you find on your credit card statement.

Here is a list of the terms you find on a typical statement:

APR The annual percentage rate is the yearly interest rate you pay on any outstanding balance.

Credit available The amount still available after the lender deducts the amount you already owe on the card.

Credit line The maximum amount you can owe at any time. If you go over your credit line, you may have to pay a fee. You might also trigger a higher interest rate.

Cash advance Avoid using this if you can. The interest rate is usually higher than on purchases, you pay an extra fee and there is typically no grace period. Fees usually vary from 2 percent to 5 percent of the amount advanced. The interest on a cash advance begins accruing immediately. According to a recent credit card survey by Consumer Action, the average cash advance APR is 19.27 percent, compared with the 11.73 percent average on purchases.

Grace period The period of time during which you must pay for your purchases in full or be charged interest. Usually this is 25 days but it’s getting shorter in some cases 20 days. For example, if the billing date on your credit card is Sept. 1, you have until Sept. 20 to pay your entire bill. That does not mean mailing it on the 20th. Your payment has to reach the credit card company by the due date.

Late-payment charge If your payment arrives after the grace period, you may be charged a late fee. The majority of issuers in the Consumer Action survey charged a $29 late fee. An increasing number of issuers are charging as much as $35. If you don’t pay on time, late fees are not the only punishment you face. Almost three-quarters of issuers will penalize you by imposing a higher interest rate (also known as default or delinquency rates) for customers who make one or more late payments.

Minimum payment The percentage amount of the balance that must be paid monthly in order to not be in arrears. For many cards, that rate is as low as 2 percent of the unpaid balance.

On the back of the bill you should find which method is used to calculate the interest rate you are charged:

Variable rate The interest rate is subject to change depending on the index used by the issuer. Some of the common indexes are the prime rate or Treasury bill rates (one, three or six months).

Tiered rate Different rates are applied to different levels of your outstanding balance. For example, you may be charged 15 percent interest on balances up to $1,000 and 18 percent on amounts over $1,000.

Fixed rate The rate remains constant until the credit card issuer gives written notice of a change. By federal law, issuers must notify consumers before changing the fixed interest rate.