Sixth-grade pupils across Cyprus are learning to budget, save and recognise investment scams using Toko, a fictional digital currency from a city a century in the future. The material, produced by the Ministry of Education, Sport and Youth’s Primary Education Directorate, allows children to discuss financial dilemmas without having to disclose their own family’s circumstances.
Who developed the material
The story and its accompanying educational activities were developed in collaboration with Dr Andreas Milidones, Professor of Finance at the University of Cyprus, and author Maria Loizidou, according to a Ministry announcement reported by CNA.
Ms Loizidou’s story is titled “70 Toko and a Hole in the Shoe”.
A digital city in the year 2125
The story is set in Axioupoli, a highly advanced city in the year 2125. Everyone there uses Toko, digital money that cannot fall out of holes in pockets or accidentally end up in the washing machine.
Why financial literacy is taught in health education
The material is taught in Health Education, where financial literacy is a distinct unit because it is directly linked to a person’s health and well-being, the Ministry says.
It can also be connected to other themes in the subject, including emotions, friendship, life values, nutrition, risk, living conditions and consumer rights.
A fictional currency to avoid personal comparisons
According to the announcement, the future setting and fictional currency allow children to discuss financial dilemmas without disclosing their family’s financial circumstances or feeling uncomfortable through personal comparisons.
Through the characters’ adventures, pupils learn about managing money, difficulties and mistakes, social inequalities, and the importance of planning and foresight.
Budgeting, saving and borrowing
The activities help pupils:
- distinguish needs from wants
- identify income and expenses
- prepare a budget
- save for the future and for emergencies, building a “safety cushion”
- understand borrowing, repayment and the importance of trust
In one activity, children plan a birthday party on a set budget and discuss excess, and whether happiness depends on how much is spent.
Learning to recognise scams
A comic satirising promises such as “give me 100 Toko and in two weeks you’ll get 200 back” teaches children to recognise online and investment scams.
The “Fair Country” activity
In the “Fair Country” activity, pupils suggest ways to make unfair situations fairer. They consider, for example, how a child without a computer can take part in learning, or how a child whose family cannot afford it can go on a school trip.
Their proposals draw on cooperation, social support and equal opportunities.
Distribution and teacher training
All sixth-grade pupils received their own copy during the previous and current school years.
To support classroom use, teacher training was held in Nicosia during the previous school year, coordinated by the Cyprus Pedagogical Institute and supported by the University of Cyprus. Similar training is planned in Limassol this year.
According to the announcement, teachers and children have responded positively to the story, which addresses money management without isolating children from injustice and inequality.
The Ministry’s stated aims
The Ministry says the aim is to help develop people who think critically, reflect, learn, make choices and seek solutions for themselves and society.
Money remains a tool that, used correctly and prudently, can reduce financial worries, it adds. The approach is not intended to make children miserly or rich, but to encourage them to avoid the mistakes of previous generations and decisions that could put them in a difficult financial position.
The Ministry describes financial literacy as the first line of defence for children and citizens, helping them recognise and avoid scams and delusions.
The story closes with the question “What really has value?”, a reminder that not all of life’s gains are measured in money.
