Financial Capability
Financial capability is the ability to manage one’s own finances and to become questioning and informed consumers of financial services.
Examples of areas of the curriculum where elements of financial capability can be taught:
| Curriculum Area | Examples of Financial Capability Activities |
|
Art |
Working with local freelance ‘artists in residence’ students can consider financial issues related to being in business as an artist, such as costing created artefacts, calculating overhead costs and business planning. Extending the principles of creative projects in your school. |
|
Citizenship |
Setting up and running a mini-business or social enterprise with the aim of improving the local environment or community services. |
|
Food Technology |
Designing and producing a healthy eating product for sale, involving market research, budgeting, costing and calculating profit and loss. |
|
Drama/Dance/Music PE |
Managing front of house arrangements for a school’s Drama/Dance/Music/PE event which involves costing and selling tickets and programmes, providing and selling refreshments and promotional products at the event. |
|
English |
Producing a book of short stories/poems written by the students that involves them in the business planning, market research, using accounting software, raising capital, costing and selling. Mentoring work with a feeder Primary School. |
|
Business Studies |
Small groups of students creating and managing a portfolio of stocks and shares as part of a national competition e.g. stock market challenge, learning to work within a budget and how to identify and calculate profit |
|
Mathematics |
Getting young people equipped with the knowledge and skills for them to make informed choices when they face personal and financial decisions at various stages of their lives. Use of SSAT resource ‘Adding up to a lifetime’ |
|
PRC / Communities |
A social enterprise project looking at new ideas for charity fund raising and the development of social and economic housing for communities through charitable funding. |
|
Modern Foreign Languages |
Running a school shop or café in a modern foreign language increases understanding of working with Euros, for example, the day-to-day finances of the enterprise, retail and wholesale costings and being responsible for money management. |
|
Science |
Creating a school pond, where students are given a budget to purchase plants and materials following research into ponds and pond life. They can keep simple accounts and bring spending in line with their budgets. |
|
Geography |
Running a Fairtrade shop where the principles of Fairtrade are up held and promoted through the sale of goods, the venture can be supported by work within the curriculum on development and trade.
|
Where does financial capability fit with teaching and learning outcomes?
|
|
Key outcomes: enterprise capability |
Supportive outcomes: financial capability |
Supportive outcomes: business and economic understanding |
|
Knowledge and understanding |
How businesses work, including set up; innovation; evaluating risk; managing change and closing operations |
Issues such as money; interest rates; credit; investment and understanding of financial products |
Concepts such as market competition; price efficiency and growth. |
|
Skills |
Decision making; leadership; managing risk; personal effectiveness and interpersonal skills |
Budgeting; costing projects; financial planning; financial risk management and risk and return. |
Decision-making and investigating simple hypothesis |
|
Attributes |
Self-reliance; a can-do attitude; ambition and an analytic questioning approach |
Taking responsibility for financial decisions; critically evaluating and participating in the use of financial services and products and a balanced approach to risk taking. |
Taking an interest in business and economic issues. |
Students should not only consider their own financial choices but also how those made locally, nationally and internationally by others might affect both their personal and business lives now and in the future.