After school care software| 5 ideas to introduce financial skills to kids 

Use the time saved by your after school care software to plan fun lessons teaching basic financial skills - something not covered in most primary schools!

1. Create class ‘bank notes’

Have the kids create their own currency on cards and assign each note a $1 or $2 value. Pass around a genuine note as an example, and consider discussing the significance of the people or symbols on it!

2- Reward good deeds

Once you’ve collected the new currency, get creative and use it to reward good behaviour.  Don’t let those small acts of kindness or helpfulness go unrewarded!

3. Save or spend?

It’s important the notes can be exchanged for privileges or treats so they have value.  Pin a poster to the wall with different rewards and scale them to promote saving.  Maybe “$1” can buy a sticker, while “$5” can purchase computer time.

4. Competition

Financial growth is always relative to your local community.  Simply saving more than your peers is enough to enable you to progress to a better quality of life over time.  Simulate this in the classroom by running bi-weekly competitions to see who can resist spending and save the most money.  Provide an incentive by making a prize for the winner that is better than what could be purchased with the equivalent amount.

5. Board games

Games such as Monopoly or the Game of Life are great for teaching kids to carefully consider each purchase.  They reinforce the basic value of money and introduce new concepts like spending money to make money. There is a junior version of Monopoly suitable for ages 5+ and both games are now available as apps.

Safety tip: avoid coins with small children as they are a choking hazard!

Is your after school club look too time consuming?