Money Town: Make It Count! Opens at Children’s Museum Singapore CMSG

CHILDREN’S MUSEUM SINGAPORE LAUNCHES MONEY TOWN: MAKE IT COUNT! TO HELP CHILDREN BUILD FINANCIAL LITERACY THROUGH PLAY

With UOB Foundation as Presenting Partner, the interactive exhibition is shaped with children, educators, caregivers and community partners to help young visitors build financial literacy through play.

CMSG Money Town

How early should children start learning to manage money? At Children’s Museum Singapore’s (CMSG) new special exhibition, Money Town: Make It Count!, primarily designed for children aged five to nine, visitors can practise earning, saving, spending and donating through hands-on play. Parents and caregivers will take an active role in their learning journey. A dedicated playspace designed especially for younger visitors, Money Barn, is also available for children aged 48 months and below. Opening on 14 November 2026, the exhibition turns everyday financial choices into age-appropriate experiences designed to build healthy money habits from young.

With UOB Foundation as Presenting Partner, Money Town: Make It Count! will run till January 2029. The partnership reflects UOB’s commitment to building financial resilience by helping children develop the knowledge and habits to make informed money decisions from an early age. Through hands-on learning and conversations with their families, the exhibition aims to lay a foundation for responsible financial choices throughout life.

Ms Janet Young, Chairman, UOB Foundation, said: “Financial resilience starts with the habits and values we build from a young age. Through Money Town: Make It Count!, we hope to inspire children to understand the importance of saving, spending wisely, planning ahead, and giving back, while empowering families to have meaningful conversations about the value of money. By building these foundations early, we can help equip future generations with the confidence and resilience to build a better future for themselves, their families, and communities.”

The exhibition was developed through CMSG’s inaugural Curator Residency in collaboration with FRida & freD, The Graz Children’s Museum in Austria. This collaboration brings an international perspective to an interactive, child-centred experience designed to help children build healthy money habits from an early age.

Money Town CMSG

Designed and created in collaboration with children, the exhibition reflects CMSG’s approach to making complex topics accessible through play. During its development, children across age groups tested concepts through role play and activity stations. Educators, caregivers and community partners contributed perspectives on how children encounter money in everyday life, including persons with special needs. Their responses informed how financial concepts were translated into engaging, age-appropriate experiences for children.

Beyond introducing financial choices, the exhibition encourages families to discuss cost, worth and what money can or cannot buy. Visitors explore forms of value beyond money, including health, time and sentimental attachment. The concept of sentimental value is brought to life through a signature “chou-chou” scent, developed with Givaudan and tested with children, which evokes the comfort and nostalgia of treasured possessions.

“Good money habits start young, and children learn best when they can see, do and talk things through. Money Town: Make It Count! gives them a safe, playful space to make choices, while caregivers, educators and the wider community help those habits take root. By involving them in the exhibition, programmes, and take-home resources, we hope families will continue these conversations long after their visit,” said Asmah Alias, Director of Galleries, Exhibitions and Museums, HeritageSG.

Learning about money through play

Childrens Museum SG Money Town

In line with CMSG’s child-first approach to curation, Money Town: Make It Count! uses play to turn financial ideas into choices children can experience for themselves. On entry, each young visitor receives a personalised RFID-enabled wristband that serves as their Money Town wallet throughout the exhibition. They are randomly assigned animal character avatars. Using RFID technology, children earn, save, spend, donate and collect rewards as they navigate different financial situations. They will also be able to see how their decisions affect the resources available to them. The exhibition also introduces the history and heritage of money through trade, exchange and museum objects.

As children move through Money Town, they repeatedly make and review financial choices. Depositing Money Town dollars and watching their savings grow introduces patience, planning and working towards future goals, while comparing needs and wants helps them manage limited resources. Interactive anti-scam challenges extend these skills to the digital world by encouraging children to identify risks, question suspicious claims and make informed choices. At the end of the journey, each child receives a take-home receipt and printed badge recording the decisions made during the visit and inviting them to return and try a different approach.

Meanwhile, Money Barn, a dedicated playspace designed for children aged 48 months and below, offers age-appropriate learning through imaginative play, hands-on exploration and sensory experiences. Activities focus on foundational skills such as sorting, counting, matching and role-play, helping to develop curiosity and confidence in a playful environment.

Extending learning beyond the visit

Money Town: Make It Count! is designed as a shared parent-child experience. Using RFID wristbands, caregivers can be paired with their child to earn digital bonus dollars at selected exhibits. This creates natural opportunities to discuss choices, trade-offs and money habits in the moment. Pre- and post-visit guides developed with child therapists also support meaningful play and conversations before and after the museum visit.

“Children can make sense of money through play and through the everyday moments they share with their families, peers and trusted adults. The parental guides we developed are designed to encourage families and caregivers to follow their child’s natural curiosity. The objective is to acknowledge feelings around choices, practise patience and decision-making, with reassurance and encouragement rather than pressure to get it right,” said Ms Tanuja Nair, a certified Child Life Therapist who worked with CMSG to develop the pre- and post-visit parental guides.

The exhibition is the starting point of a longer learning journey supported by the wider community around each child. Family and school programmes, community outreach, accessibility initiatives, digital engagement and other learning resources will help children revisit and practise budgeting, goal-setting, responsible spending and giving over time.

A travelling version of Money Town: Make It Count! is also planned for malls and public libraries from April 2027 to January 2029, extending the experience to more children and families beyond the physical walls of the museum.

To commemorate the exhibition’s opening, CMSG will present a series of programmes on 14 and 15 November 2026. Centred around the year-end themes of giving, the launch weekend programmes invite children and families to explore financial concepts and wider ideas of value through play, participation and reflection.

Plan your visit

Details on Money Town: Make It Count! can be accessed at Money Town: Make it Count!. Tickets for paid programmes can be purchased online via [Ticketed] The Priceless Pantry: Festive Rainbow Sugee Cookies. Pre-visit and post-visit parental guides are available at the respective links.

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