Today’s children are growing up in a world that looks very different from the one we knew just ten or twenty years ago. They no longer receive pocket money simply to buy a snack—they often have their own bank cards, which they use to pay in the school cafeteria or at local shops, says Vaida Uždavinė, a primary school teacher and educational methodologist at Riešė Gymnasium in Lithuania.
Through financial literacy education, she aims to teach children much more than how to count money. Her lessons focus on building independence, responsibility and lifelong habits that will help children make informed decisions as they grow.
"If children learn in primary school to pause before making a decision, compare different options, plan a simple budget or save towards a personal goal, there's a strong chance these habits will stay with them into adulthood," she says.
How did financial literacy become part of your teaching? Was it a natural addition to your classroom, or a conscious decision to change your approach to education?
About five years ago, after seeing one group of fourth-graders graduate and while preparing to welcome a new class of first-graders, I started thinking about what else I could offer my pupils.
At the time, I was teaching an ethnocultural education programme. It was important to me that children learned about Lithuanian traditions, listened to folk tales and sang traditional songs. But I also felt they needed something that would prepare them not only to appreciate their cultural heritage but also to navigate the future. I wanted to introduce something that would be both engaging and genuinely useful in their everyday lives.
That's when I remembered studying economics and entrepreneurship through the Junior Achievement programme when I was at school myself. After doing some research, I discovered that Lithuanian Junior Achievement (LJA) also offered programmes designed specifically for primary school pupils.
I contacted the organisation, completed the necessary training and, by September, had introduced a weekly financial literacy lesson for my first-grade class.
Looking back, integrating financial literacy into my teaching was one of the best professional decisions I've made.
From the very beginning of primary school, my pupils had one financial literacy lesson each week. At the same time, I didn't limit myself to the official curriculum. I continuously expanded it with activities I designed myself, practical exercises and real-life situations that children could relate to.
For me, the goal was never simply to teach children about money. I wanted them to learn responsibility, develop sound decision-making skills and understand how everyday choices shape their future.
Vaida Uždavinė
Financial literacy has traditionally not been considered a core subject in primary education. How important is it for schools to address the realities of modern society?
In many ways, money has always been part of primary education. When I was a child, we learned to recognise coins and banknotes during maths and social studies lessons. We practised counting money, making change and even talked a little about saving.
Today, however, financial literacy means much more than learning how to calculate.
It is about making informed decisions, planning ahead, working with others, solving problems and taking responsibility for the consequences of our choices.
Children today encounter advertising, online shopping, mobile apps, social media and influencer culture from a very early age. These are realities we cannot ignore. On the contrary, schools have an important role in helping children evaluate information critically, distinguish genuine value from marketing and recognise content that may even be harmful.
More broadly, I believe education is moving away from simply transferring knowledge towards developing competencies.
What matters most is not how much a child knows, but how well they can apply that knowledge in real life. Can they explain the reasoning behind their choices? Can they anticipate the consequences of their decisions? Can they make responsible judgments?
Financial literacy is one of those areas where academic learning naturally connects with practical life skills that children will need throughout their lives.
Some people may feel that primary school is too early to introduce financial literacy. Why do you believe these lessons should begin in childhood?
I believe childhood is precisely when the most important habits are formed. If children learn in primary school to pause before making decisions, compare different options, plan a small budget or save towards a personal goal, those habits are very likely to stay with them as adults.
Today's children are growing up in a completely different environment than children did just ten or twenty years ago. They don't simply receive pocket money to buy a snack. Many play online games that involve virtual currencies, and many already have bank cards they use to pay for meals at school or make purchases in shops.
As a result, money often feels invisible to them. They no longer physically see it changing hands. They simply tap a card, and the payment goes through. The first time they truly encounter the reality of money is when they hear, "There aren't enough funds." That's usually followed by a phone call to Mum or Dad asking for more money to be transferred. These are exactly the kinds of situations we discuss in class.
We talk about the difference between wants and needs, about planning ahead, understanding that money comes from work, recognising that it doesn't all have to be spent immediately and learning that sometimes it's worth saving for a bigger goal rather than satisfying every impulse.
What other topics do you cover with your pupils? What does the programme include, and what are its main objectives?
We explore a wide range of topics, including the purpose and history of money, work and professions, income, wants and needs, saving, responsible consumption, sustainability, and making informed choices about goods and services. Children also learn how communities function—that people have different jobs, earn different incomes, pay taxes, and need to consider their financial circumstances when making decisions.
Practical learning is an essential part of every lesson. We plan birthday party budgets, compare prices, and organise what we call "financial field trips" to supermarkets, where children learn how to compare products, read labels and analyse prices.
We also visit banks and other organisations to learn how they operate. These visits introduce children to a wide range of professions and help them see just how many career paths may be open to them in the future.
In Years 3 and 4, pupils even create their own small businesses. They learn how to generate ideas, develop a business plan, calculate income and expenses, understand how profit is created and discover why managing money responsibly is just as important as earning it. The primary goal of these lessons is not to teach as many financial terms as possible.
What matters far more to me is helping children develop the mindset and everyday habits that will serve them throughout life: setting goals, planning ahead, making responsible choices, thinking about the consequences of their decisions and understanding that every choice comes at a cost. And that cost isn't always financial. Sometimes it involves time, effort, responsibility or giving up another opportunity.
Do practical subjects like financial literacy require different teaching methods from traditional classroom lessons?
Absolutely. Financial literacy is best learned through real-life experiences rather than theoretical instruction. As a teacher, my goal is to ensure that financial literacy doesn't remain just another classroom topic. I want children to see it as something they use in everyday life.
For example, when we're planning a class trip, the children take responsibility for researching where we could have lunch. They compare restaurant prices, study menus, discuss the options, explain their reasoning and work together to decide which choice would be best for the whole class.
Planning the trip also encourages them to think beyond the cost of the meal. They investigate how much the bus will cost, how far they'll need to walk from the bus stop to the restaurant or museum, calculate the route using maps and estimate how much time everything will take.
These activities help children understand that financial decisions are rarely just about money. They're also about time, convenience, other people's needs and finding solutions that work for everyone.
At the same time, they develop many other important skills. They learn how to collaborate, defend their opinions, listen respectfully to others, negotiate, compromise and make decisions together.
Most importantly, they clearly see that what we discuss in the classroom has direct relevance to their everyday lives. Once children recognise that connection, they become far more engaged. They begin asking their own questions, looking for answers and applying what they've learned beyond the classroom.
Is it difficult to talk about money when children come from families with very different financial circumstances?
Talking about money always requires sensitivity because every child comes from a different background. Some children receive pocket money every week, while others receive none at all. Some families travel frequently, while others live much more modestly.
That's why it's essential that no child ever feels judged or compared based on their family's financial situation. For this reason, we usually work with fictional scenarios rather than discussing children's personal experiences. We analyse case studies, solve practical problems and debate different choices without focusing on any individual child's circumstances.
The message I want every child to take away is that responsible financial decision-making is not determined by how much money someone has. It depends on being able to plan ahead, distinguish between wants and needs, think about consequences and make informed choices. Those are skills that every child can learn, regardless of their family's income or circumstances.
What kinds of skills do these lessons help children develop?
These lessons help children become more independent, responsible and confident decision-makers. They strengthen critical thinking, planning skills and the ability to explain and justify their choices. Children begin to understand that choosing one thing often means giving up another.
They learn how to set priorities, accept that they can't have everything immediately, delay gratification and work towards long-term goals instead of acting on impulse. These are essential self-regulation skills that are valuable not only in managing money but in almost every aspect of life.
Financial literacy lessons also encourage creativity and entrepreneurial thinking. Children learn how to identify problems, generate solutions, develop ideas and consider what kinds of products or services might genuinely benefit other people. They work together, divide responsibilities, present their ideas and reflect on the outcomes of their work.
For me, however, financial literacy is first and foremost about values. We spend a great deal of time discussing honesty, responsible consumption, generosity, helping others, respecting work, caring for the environment and recognising our responsibility not only for ourselves but also for those around us.
I believe these values provide the foundation for making wise financial decisions—and, more importantly, thoughtful life decisions—in the future.
Financial literacy is often said to begin at home. What role do parents play in shaping their children's relationship with money?
Financial literacy truly does begin at home. The family is where children first observe how financial decisions are made—how purchases are planned, whether saving is discussed, how belongings are cared for, how parents respond to their children's wishes, and whether helping others is seen as an important value.
That is why parents' own behaviour has such a profound influence. It's equally important that the messages children receive at school and at home reinforce one another.
If we encourage responsible consumption, planning ahead and delayed gratification in the classroom, but every wish is immediately fulfilled at home—or children are never involved in everyday decision-making—it becomes much more difficult to develop these habits.
How can parents help children develop financial awareness in everyday life?
Financial awareness doesn't require complicated lessons. It can be developed through simple everyday experiences. For example, before going to the supermarket, families can make a shopping list together, compare the prices of similar products and discuss why one item is chosen over another.
Parents can also give children a small amount of money for a specific purchase and allow them to decide how to spend it. Situations like these teach much more than basic arithmetic—they help children practise making decisions and taking responsibility for them.
It's also valuable to set a savings goal together, monitor progress and calculate how much more needs to be saved before reaching it. This teaches patience and helps children understand the value of working towards long-term goals.
Advertising is another topic worth discussing. Children are exposed to it every day, so it's important to talk about why advertisements exist, how they influence our choices and how we can tell whether we genuinely need something—or simply want it because it has been marketed effectively.
Parents can also involve children in small family financial decisions, such as planning a shopping list, discussing larger purchases—whether it's a new refrigerator, a family holiday or a washing machine—or talking about upcoming household expenses.
There's no need to involve children in every financial concern the family may have. Simply including them in age-appropriate decisions helps them understand that purchases require planning and that not everything can—or should—be bought immediately. It also teaches them that good decisions involve more than just having enough money.
What new competencies do teachers need today, particularly when children come to school with such diverse experiences and schools are expected to prepare them not only for exams but also for life?
Today's teachers need much more than subject expertise. We need to create learning experiences that connect with real life, integrate knowledge across different subjects and help children understand where and how they will use what they learn beyond the classroom.
Another essential competency is collaboration. Teachers need to work closely with parents, specialists and professionals from a wide range of fields.
Personally, I enjoy involving parents in the learning process whenever possible. I invite them to talk about their professions or hobbies, or even welcome classes to visit their workplaces.
These experiences enrich classroom learning, strengthen the school community and give children an opportunity to feel proud of their parents while discovering the diversity of careers available to them. If I had to name one quality that defines an effective teacher today, however, it would be adaptability.
The world is changing rapidly, and teachers must continue learning, evolving and looking for new ways to engage and prepare their pupils. Our purpose is not simply to help children pass another assessment. Our greatest responsibility is to help them grow into independent, responsible and critical thinkers who can confidently navigate the challenges of everyday life.
The philanthropic Devbridge Foundation, in partnership with Lithuanian Junior Achievement (LJA), is implementing a nationwide initiative that brings financial literacy and entrepreneurship education to primary school pupils in pilot schools across Lithuania.
The initiative aims to inspire schools throughout the country to integrate entrepreneurship and financial literacy into the primary education curriculum, helping children develop the practical skills, critical thinking and responsible decision-making abilities they will need throughout their lives.