Children hear “we can’t afford it” and “you don’t need that” constantly, without ever being told the difference. This activity makes the distinction concrete, using a trolley you were filling anyway.
Nothing. Just do it while you shop.
How it works
- Explain the two words before you go in. A need is something we’d struggle without — food, soap, school shoes. A want is something nice that we’d still be fine without. Keep it to two sentences.
- Give your child a job. As you put each item in the trolley, they call it: need or want. Don’t correct them yet.
- Let the tricky ones happen. Biscuits? Shampoo versus the nice shampoo? These are the interesting ones, and children usually spot the difficulty themselves.
- Ask one question at the end. “If we could only take home the needs, what would we have to put back?” Let them answer. Don’t fill the silence.
- Say the honest part. We buy wants too, on purpose, because a life of only needs would be miserable. The skill is knowing which is which.
That spending is a choice rather than a fixed fact — and that the same item can be a need or a want depending on the situation.
What usually happens
Most children put everything they like in the “need” column at first. That isn’t failure, it’s the whole point — you can watch them work out the difference in real time, which sticks far better than being told.
Expect an argument about whether treats are a need. Let them make the case. A child defending a position is a child thinking.
Make it easier
Do one aisle rather than the whole shop, and start with obvious items — bread, then sweets.
Make it harder
Add a third category: “need, but a cheaper version would do.” That’s where real budgeting starts.
Needs and wants is lesson 2 of the Smartmonies programme, where children take it further with sorting games and a budget challenge. See the ten lessons →