Saving in schools
State's elementary students learn the importance of lifelong saving
3:25 p.m., April 22, 2015--“In a mystical place that defies definition, lives Investo the Great, the money magician…” So began Delaware State Bank Commissioner Robert A. Glen’s reading of The Great Investo and the Flourishing Flamingos to a third-grade classroom at Gallaher Elementary School yesterday.
In the story, The Great Investo creates magical flamingos that multiply at an out-of-control rate; this is a metaphor for the power of compound interest. The story is silly, but intended to inspire kids to save their money and watch it grow.
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Glen is one of hundreds of volunteers who visit third- and fourth-grade classrooms around the state as part of Teach Children to Save Day (TCTSD) Week, produced in Delaware jointly by the University of Delaware’s Center for Economics Education and Entrepreneurship (CEEE) and the Delaware Bankers Association (DBA).
TCTSD volunteers reach 7,500 students in Delaware with a message about the importance of lifelong saving habits through entertaining stories accompanied by brief lessons and classroom discussion.
“Does anybody here know what interest is?” Glen asked the class during his lesson.
“Interest is when every year, your money grows,” said one student in response.
“Exactly,” said Glen.
During the lesson students’ hands also shot into the air to share their saving goals, ranging from a car to a Barbie doll to college tuition.
Glen then sat down with the class to solve a worksheet about the amount that a small deposit will grow with the power of compound interest.
About Teach Children to Save Day
On Monday, April 20, Gov. Jack Markell visited Highlands Elementary School for the annual signing of a proclamation marking TCTSD Week in Delaware.
Glen, who has participated in TCTSD several times during his 16 years as commissioner, said that the program “teaches the importance of saving,” and “makes banking fun.”
Greg Koseluk, vice president of marketing and public relations for the DBA, agrees with Glen, saying, “TCTSD introduces kids to many important personal financial concepts.”
“Not only do they learn about saving money, they learn it’s best to save in an interest-bearing bank account,” Koseluk continued. “The topic of saving also opens up discussions on setting goals and planning for the future.”
Koseluk is also the author and illustrator of The Great Investo and the Flourishing Flamingos, as well as its four predecessors, like The Great Investo and the Secret Saver.
“Delaware’s TCTSD program is the only one in the nation that creates its own books and lessons specifically tailored to the needs of our elementary school students,” Koseluk said. “In the last 17 years, we’ve gone from trying to match books to a lesson to creating our own books.”
The books were created with the support and funding of Capital One, who also recently redesigned an online registration platform that matches registered teachers with TCTSD volunteers.
Koseluk added that UD’s CEEE, of the Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics, is another critical part of TCTSD’s success in Delaware.
“UD is one-half of a wonderful partnership that makes TCTSD in Delaware possible,” Koseluk said. “The DBA and UD’s CEEE have a relationship that is unique in the country, uniting educators and the financial services industry to teach children about the importance of saving.”
He said he hopes that the program will continue to demonstrate that interest in saving can be sparked even at a very early age.
“Hopefully we’ll have the opportunity to create new and better books and lessons to keep introducing children to the importance of saving for the future economic independence.”
Article by Sunny Rosen
Photos by Evan Krape