The Academy School (TAS), Pune, organised a ‘Market Day’ for the students wherein they turned entrepreneurs for a day and learned about how money works in real world. The friendly activity of trading with fake currency was organised on the TAS campus where students from Nursery, Junior KG, Senior KG, Grade 1, and Grade 2 turned buyers and sellers. The activity was aimed at creating awareness among students regarding financial concepts and harbour financial literacy.
The students took center stage as they set up their shops, set prices, and sold commodities in friendly trades with fake notes, thereby gaining a first-hand experience of monetary procedure and fiscal prudence.
The initiative, spearheaded by Dr. Maithili Tambe, also reinforced the importance of eco-consciousness while learning about commerce as students also designed fake currency and created handmade newspaper bags. “The whole exercise will help students gain a deeper understanding of financial transaction while also engaging in a fun activity as the students saw themselves transforming into shopkeepers and customers and the school campus was converted into a marketplace,” Tambe said.
Tambe also stated that the initiative also empowered the students to make their own decisions as the event saw no parental involvement. “Self-confidence is of utmost importance at an early stage. Handing out change, calculating a transaction cost is live learning and responsible citizen both at the same time. The activity is another step in TAS’ mission to provide holistic education, preparing students for real-world experiences while instilling confidence, creativity, and essential life skills.”
The Foundational Year Coordinator of The Academy School, Ms. Sunayana Mutha, shared her thoughts: “Watching these young students take charge and truly immerse themselves in this event is wonderful. Our aim is to teach life skills in a meaningful, interactive way. It’s about making learning fun and building a foundation for financial literacy.”
By the end of the day, many students proudly displayed their earnings, thrilled by the success of their shops. As one teacher noted, “Some students were already discussing what they could save for or buy at the next market—proof that the lesson had truly taken root.”
