In today’s complex economic landscape, providing children with a foundation in financial education is more critical than ever. By starting early, as young as ages three or four, parents and educators can move beyond basic literacy to achieve financial fluency, giving children the confidence to navigate the language of money. This process, often called financial parenting, is not just about teaching technical skills; it is about transmitting core family values and raising self-confident individuals who can distinguish between fleeting impulses and long-term intentions. Openly discussing money reduces childhood anxiety and provides children with the agency and security they need to thrive in the real world.
Here at Sydenham & Dulwich Girls, teaching children all about financial literacy forms part of our valuable PSHE programme. Giraffe Girls are affectionately known as ‘Daydream Believers’ as they consider what they want their future self to look like. To enrich our Financial curriculum further, we held our bespoke ‘Fina’s Finance Day’.
The day was packed with engaging and creative activities designed to help our girls become sensible with money. The morning began with Nurse McManus kindly distributing ‘money trees’ to each class, setting the stage for a day of growth. Throughout the day, staff generously awarded children with tokens for the hard work they demonstrated and for their kindness and helpfulness towards others. At the end of the day, the children counted their total number of tokens as a class. They were then invited to democratically vote for the coupons they would like to buy and enjoy. These coupons included wearing slippers for a day in the classroom, enjoying music being played in the background during a lesson of their teacher’s choice. Thinking outwardly, children were also encouraged to donate a token or more to one of four causes which were conscientiously and thoughtfully chosen for by both School Council representatives and the Flourish and Fundraise committee. Before half term, the Year 5 girls involved in selecting these charities shared information about each charity in assembly and girls were also invited to create posters to generate an awareness of the charities around the school. Well done to all the girls involved! The ‘winning’ charity was Rosa, a charity that supports girls and women across the UK.
Every child participated in age-appropriate Maths and PSHE lessons focused on finances, and each year group enjoyed a tailored assembly or a visit from an expert guest speaker.
Our pre-prep girls thoroughly enjoyed setting up a shop and thinking carefully about how they would spend their money. Years 2 and 3 focussed on ‘needs and wants’ and considered how these may be the same or different for different people, e.g. the elderly, disabled or parent of a young child. Year 4 became ‘mini-entrepreneurs’ during an enriching workshop led a Finance Manager at Procter & Gamble, Sara Black (Miss Black’s twin sister!). Sara challenged the girls to think big with the ‘P&G Mini CEO Challenge’, where they were split into business teams to invent, budget, design, and advertise a brand-new product. The girls learned that bringing an idea to life requires strategic spending and serious planning. They practiced negotiating prices for supermarkets and learned the vital lesson that you must ‘save up some money just in case’.
“I learned about budgeting and how you can make products that have high quality without spending too much… a product must be strategically sold to get into supermarkets.”
Evie, Year 4
Our older girls received an inspiring talk from Kate, a manager at Metro Bank, who focused on saving, budgeting, and scam prevention. The girls learned practical tips, such as setting up a separate savings account for spare money after bills are paid to let it build up over time. They also explored how bank apps help people stay organised and learned the ‘five signs of a scammer’, which include spotting weird phone numbers, poor grammar, and suspicious links that ask for sign-in details. The session highlighted the importance of thinking before spending to avoid the pitfalls of debt.
“Debt can lead you into real trouble, so it is very important to think before you spend and get help if you find yourself in this position… whether that is a parent or trusted adult”
Ettie, Year 6