Planning an early years money lesson can be tricky when children are still learning to make everyday choices, wait, count and talk about what matters to them. For Me For You For Later gives educators a gentle way to introduce financial literacy for preschool children through familiar routines, simple discussion prompts and hands-on activities around spending, sharing and saving.
Early years educators, nursery practitioners, childminders and family childcare providers are the clearest audience for this Sesame Street educator guide, especially those working with preschool children from around birth to five. It frames money skills as part of daily learning, linking sorting, counting, community helpers, jobs, earning money, waiting, choosing and caring for valued things.
The guide is organised around four core ideas: financial basics, value, money basics, and spending, sharing and saving. It explains how to help children notice that making a choice means picking one option instead of another, with examples for weather chats, choice time and story time questions about characters’ decisions and outcomes.
A useful section on value defines it as "how important something is to you" and encourages group conversations about people, activities or objects children value. The included "What I Value" mini-book activity asks children to draw and write, then take the booklet home, making it suitable for classroom follow-up, family engagement and home learning.
Money basics are handled with child-friendly language about coins, dollar bills, credit and debit cards, needs, wants, services, jobs and earning. There is also a printable play money activity, with suggestions to colour, cut, sort by type or amount, and create pretend money for role play areas.
Searchers looking for preschool financial education, early years money activities, spending saving sharing lessons, or financial capability resources for young children will find practical prompts here. The material was created by Sesame Workshop in partnership with PNC Grow Up Great.
