Written for My Money Week. Check this year's My Money Week dates with Young Enterprise before you advertise the assembly internally.
Pick one. It changes the words on every slide, and which slides you get.
A clicker or the arrow keys. Nothing else. No printing, no props, no coins.
Agree one before you start. "Hands up if you can hear me" — raise your own hand silently and say nothing. Works in any hall.
Brief your DSL and pastoral lead before you run this. An assembly about money can surface family debt. Have a named adult free straight afterwards and tell the school who it is. Reception at the front with their TA. Nothing here asks a child what they get, have or own — keep it that way if you ad-lib.
Slide 4 is the hands-high, hands-low vote. Let the hall disagree and do not correct anyone. That is the whole assembly. Slide 2 comes in two versions — EYFS/KS1 stand up, KS2 guess a length of time first and then stand. Run the one for your hall, not both.
Press → when the school is settled. The next slide is what they see.
Not a prize. Not a scoreboard. A tool — and this week we find out how it works.
This beat comes in two versions. Run the one for the hall you have, not both. Either way, nobody says what they waited for.
"Stand up if you have ever wanted something and had to wait for it. (pause — let them look around) Look how many of you. Almost the whole hall. Sit down." (any child who cannot stand puts a hand up instead — say that as you ask, to the whole hall, not to individuals.)
"nobody stands yet. Hands up first: what is the longest you have ever waited for something you really wanted? Hands up for about a week. (pause) A month. (pause) A year or more. (just the length of time — never ask what it was, and do not take it further) Now stand up if you are waiting for something right now, today. (pause — let them look around) Look how many of you. Almost the whole hall. Sit down."
"Waiting is the hardest part of money, and it is exactly the same for grown-ups. Nobody gets everything at once. Everybody in this room is waiting for something."
choosing later instead of now has a name. It is called saving. It is not about how much you have — it is about deciding what you are waiting for.
"Turn to the person next to you. One word each — something money is for. Go. (ten seconds, then bring them back) Hands up if one of you said food. Keep them up if you said a home. Or warm clothes."
"Money is a swap. People do things that other people need doing, and money is how we count the swap. It pays for the things a family needs, and sometimes for things they would like."
there are six skills in managing money: earn it, save it, spend it wisely, budget, spot the tricks, and plan ahead. This assembly is about the middle ones — the ones you can start today.
"A need is something you cannot do without. Food. Water. A home. Warmth. Sleep. School. A want is something you would like, and you would still be all right without it. Sweets. The latest game. A holiday."
"I call it out, you decide. Hands high for need. Hands low for want. Water. Sweets. Food. A coat in winter. The latest game."
Go quickly, five or six seconds each. Do not correct anyone. The hall disagreeing is the point.
needs come first and wants come after, when there is enough for both. That is not a children's rule. Every adult in the country is doing that same sum. And when there is not enough to cover the needs, no order you put them in fixes that — it is not the fault of anyone in that family, and it is never a child's fault.
"Some things will not sit in one column. Trainers. A phone. A haircut. The brand somebody told you was the cool one."
"Hands high for need, hands low for want — trainers. (pause) Look around. The hall is split. Good. That means you are actually thinking."
"A phone is a want, even when it feels like a need. Trainers can be either — it depends what they are for. There is no trick answer. There is just your reason."
some things are designed to feel like needs. An advert that says only two left. A pop-up in a game that says the offer ends tonight. That hurry is the trick — and when something tells you to hurry, that is the moment to slow down.
"Thumbs up if you think a money plan is only for people who have lots of money. Thumbs down if you think it is for everybody. (pause) Keep them there."
"Thumbs down is right. A plan for money just says: this much is coming in, this much has to go out, and this is what is left. It is a habit, not a sum."
the same plan works whether it is five pounds or five thousand. The numbers change. The habit does not.
"There is a man called Martin Lewis. He started a free website called MoneySavingExpert, and he has spent years explaining money in plain English to ordinary people in this country."
"He has campaigned for money lessons in every school — because he thinks every child should leave school feeling confident about money."
"Nobody should feel muddled about money. Not grown-ups. Not you."
his big idea is a short one: money is really just maths plus confidence. You have already got the maths. This week we build the confidence.
Press → to reveal. Then ask the next two aloud — no slide needed:
"Is a phone a want or a need?" (a want — even when it feels like a need) · "What do you do when something says HURRY?" (slow down)
"Name one thing money is a swap for." (someone's time, skill or work) · "What are the three parts of a money plan?" (what comes in, what goes out, what is left)
"Close your eyes. Think of one thing you are willing to wait for. Don't say it out loud. Just hold it. (three seconds) Open your eyes. That is your money plan starting."
"And tonight — tell one grown-up one thing you learned in here. Just one. That's the homework."