New will alert pupils to the real cost of buying in-game extras and using “virtual currency” while playing online.
The materials are part of package of more than 80 financial education lessons launched by Oak National Academy to help pupils understand budgeting, borrowing and online spending.
Some of the materials - designed for Year 4 pupils aged 8 and 9 - will show how easy it is to spend real money on special features of online games such as “loot boxes”, whereby players can buy add-on extras to improve their chances of winning the game.
The resources aim to help children understand the risks of these in-game purchases, and feature a range of challenges to equip them with the knowledge and skills to manage money sensibly, both online and offline.
They will help teachers to introduce primary classes to credit and debit cards and teach them how to keep money safe. The materials also cover the tactics that advertisers use to persuade us to buy things.
Financial education
Last month the interim report of the government’s review of curriculum and assessment said it had heard consistently from young people and their parents that they wanted “more focus on the applied knowledge and skills that will equip them for later life and work”, such as financial education.
New Oak National Academy classroom resources for secondary school teachers, meanwhile, will help students to scrutinise data from online influencers and the claims they make.
These resources will also introduce students to concepts such as inflation, personal risk, cryptocurrency and investing, and lessons will help them to interpret important financial documents such as bank statements and payslips.
Oak National Academy, a publicly funded creator of optional curriculum resources for schools in England, will roll out the teaching resources for pupils aged 5 to 16 to schools by the summer.
Last year consumer champion Martin Lewis said that getting financial education into the national curriculum in England had been “counterproductive” because schools lacked the resources to deliver it.
Earlier this year MPs used a Commons debate to call for children to receive “effective” financial education at school, suggesting that the topic could be weaved into existing subjects.
John Roberts, interim chief executive of Oak National Academy, said: “We’ve got to make sure young people leave school with the fundamental knowledge and skills they need to navigate life in the complexities of the modern world.
“Oak’s new financial education resources are designed to help schools introduce pupils to core financial concepts from the age of 5 and frame them in contexts they understand and can relate to.
“By giving teachers the tools to provide well-sequenced, engaging financial learning, we can make sure it resonates with children to support them through adulthood.”
Sarah Hannafin, head of policy at the NAHT school leaders’ union, said schools recognise that financial education is vital to prepare children for the opportunities and responsibilities of adulthood.
Schools need “sufficient curriculum time and freely available high-quality resources” to further support children to develop their understanding of financial issues, she added.
“Online platforms also need to step up to the plate, however, by strengthening age verification procedures, improving monitoring, providing clearer functions for reporting concerns, and introducing more transparent codes of conduct setting out the implications of misuse,” Ms Hannafin said.
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