Max the dog versus the lion (and that sneaky monkey)
Jasper and the jiggly juicy steak
and
Hello Save Squad members
Welcome to your very own book of money adventures!
Inside, you’ll find fun stories about clever animals and humans who learn how to save their money and spend it wisely. You’ll also get awesome tips and cool activities to help you become a Save Squad hero too! So get ready to read, learn, laugh and play, because saving money can be fun!
Dear Grown-ups
This book was proudly created by Alexforbes. Read more about us and how we can help you on your savings adventures. See page 39.
Karabo the crow was thirsty. She spotted a jug with water! But the water was low… and her beak was short.
She flapped. She squawked. She even tried sucking it up with a straw. Nothing worked!
Tap tap, Karabo dropped in a pebble. Then another. And another.
The water rose. Gulp! She drank it all.
Pour some water in a jug. Then fill it with little rocks and watch the water rise.
Small actions, like saving a little each month, can help you reach your big goal.
You had a big dream – maybe it was a cool LEGO set, a sparkly Labubu doll, or even a new bike. It felt far away, like a mountain too tall to climb.
But instead of giving up, you made a plan. Each month, you saved a little bit of your allowance or birthday money. Just a few rand at a time.
It didn’t seem like much at first, but slowly, your savings grew. You watched your piggy bank fill up, and your dream got closer and closer.
One day, you had enough! You reached your goal – all because you took small steps and stuck to your plan.
Big dreams don’t need big leaps. Just little steps, taken often.
A story about saving for a rainy day.
In the sunny, giggly, wiggly woods, where mushrooms bounced and trees wore hoods, lived Annie the ant, so neat and so small, who worked through the summer, through spring and through fall.
She gathered up crumbs and packed them away, for cold, wintry nights and a no-food day. With her teeny ant-cart and a sunflower hat, she'd hum little tunes like “Just look at that!”
But who came hopping, with legs flying all over? Greg the grasshopper, loud as a bongo. He strummed on a leaf and sang, “La la la!
No time for chores when you’ve got a guitar!” “Come dance, little Annie! Come leap, come play! Why fuss with crumbs on a sunny day?”
But Annie just smiled, “I’d love to, it’s true, but I’ve got work and you should too!”
Greg flipped and he flopped and he fiddled all day. He gobbled his snacks and he snoozed in the hay. But soon came the wind, all chilly and snappy, and Greg wasn’t feeling quite so… happy.
His tummy went grumble, his toes went numb. His songs sounded flat, and he missed his drum. So o he went, with a knock on her door, to see little Annie and ask her for more.
“Annie”, he said, with a sheepish grin, “I think I forgot to save for the wind!”
Annie blinked twice and gave him a stew, with crunchy corn cakes and warm beetle brew.
“Next time, Greg, save a bit when you can. Then you’ll have plenty and still be the band!”
Greg blushed a bit and tapped out a beat and said,
“You’re right! I’ll save and still have feet!”
Word search
Don’t spend every cent you have, save a little for something fun later.
Every Saturday, you get some pocket money. It’s tempting to spend it all on sweets right away! But instead, you decide to save just a little, maybe R10 each week, in your piggy bank. Week by week, your savings grow.
After four Saturdays, you’ve saved R40! That’s enough to buy a fun new game on your phone and you still got to enjoy a few sweets along the way.
The secret?
You didn’t spend it all at once. You saved a little and it added up to something great.
See how many words about saving and about money you can find in the block above. Hint, there are 14. The answers are on page 38.
A story about how slow and steady wins the race
& Thami hami
the
tortoise
Lwazi
the hare
Lwazi the hare zoomed up with swagger.
“Catch me if you can, slow-shell!”
"Let's see who is the fastest", Lwazi the hare says to Thami the tortoise... "I'll race you to the finish line!"
Thami the tortoise blinked and said,
“I’d rather go slow and do things well.”
Lwazi dashed! He zoomed! He backflipped midair!
Thami took one small step, then another with care.
“Race to the big tree!”
The crowd shouted:
“Whoever wins gets a bag of beans. Not just any beans, magic beans that grow money trees!
“This
race is too easy”,
Lwazi said, and curled in the shade for a nap on a bed.
“WHOOOSH!”
Lwazi bolted to the tree…
Thami trudged on, step after step, saving each second like coins he had kept.
…But Thami had already finished slow and steady, you see!
Never give up on your goal.
Saving a little bit over time will get you there.
Every week, you decide to save just R5 from your pocket money. It doesn’t seem like much at first, but you stick with it, week after week.
By the end of the year, you’ve saved R5 × 52 weeks = R260. That’s enough to buy an ice cream every day during your holiday or maybe something even cooler.
The secret?
You didn’t rush. You didn’t give up. You just kept going, slow and steady and it worked!
Make a tortoise tracker with friends
Materials you will need:
• About 10 pieces of paper.
• Animal cutouts or stickers.
• Goal cards (like save R5 a week, read 1 book a week). Make around 15 cards.
• Give each goal a value: 1 for easy goals, 2 for harder ones. Saving R5 a week may be easier to do than reading 1 book every week.
• A jar to hold the goal cards.
• Markers or crayons.
What to do:
1. Build the race track
Lay the pieces of paper in a line on the floor to create a race track.
2. Mark the finish line
Write “Goal!” on the last piece of paper. That is the finish line!
3. Start the race
Each of you choose an animal (tortoise, hare, or something else in case more friends are playing).
Place your animal cutouts at the beginning of the track (first piece of paper).
4. Draw and move
Take turns drawing a goal card from the jar.
• If th e card is worth 1, move your animal cutout forward 1 space.
• If it’s worth 2, move forward 2 spaces.
5. Goal: To get to the finish line, even if it takes a little longer than you thought it would.
Every week, Uncle Rajesh would shu e to the old mango tree. He’d dig, peek at his buried box of coins, and sigh, “Ahhhh.”
But he never used it. Not for bread. Not for milk. Not for dreams.
One night, a sneaky squirrel spotted the hole.
The next morning, it was empty. Uncle Rajesh screamed, “My GOLD! MY LIFE!”
Neighbour Auntie Kheti came running.
“Did you ever use the money, Rajesh?” she asked.
“No! I only looked at it!”
She shrugged. “Then come look at the hole. Same thing.”
From that day, Uncle Rajesh opened a little vegetable shop.
The money moved and grew.
Money that just sits around does nothing. Make your money work for you!
Instead of leaving your money in a drawer where it just sits, ask Mom or Dad to help you open a bank account. Every month, put a little of your pocket money into the account.
Here’s the exciting part: your money doesn’t just sit there, it grows! The bank gives you a little extra money called interest. That means you earn money just for saving!
And guess what? Next month, you earn interest not only on what you saved, but also on the interest you earned last month. It keeps growing, like a snowball rolling down a hill!
Saving smart means your money works for you, even while you sleep!
Calculate your savings
After you’ve read the story and the lessons, try to calculate the following:
You put R20 into your bank account. You earn R1 in interest* on your savings at the end of the month. Your friend puts in R30 in his bank account and earns R1.50 interest on his savings.
1. What is the total savings in your bank account?
2. What is your friend's total savings in his bank account?
Answers on page 38.
What is “interest”?
Interest is like a thank-you gift that a bank gives you for letting them keep your money safe. Imagine you have R10 and you put it in a savings jar at the bank. The bank says: “Thanks for letting us hold your money! We’ll give you a little extra every month!”
So after a while, you look in your jar and surprise, now you have R10.50 instead of just R10. That extra 50 cents is called interest. The longer you leave your money there, the more interest you can get!
and the four siblings
A story about how money grows, no matter the season.
Winter
Adam writes:
and the four siblings
From the journal of Ouma’s
Spring Cara writes:
I walked to the mango tree. it looked… dead. Just a dry stick. Not even a bug on it.
I saw shiny green leaves! New ones! It looked like it was waking up!”
Ben
Summer
Amy writes:
Autumn
Ben writes:
“FLOWERS! Pink, fluffy, sweet-smelling ones.
I took a selfie with it.”
“YO! Juicy mangoes! I picked five. Ouma made chutney!”
We
all looked at the tree together. Ouma smiled.
“Things my darlings.” in their grow own time
Make a seasonal puppet
Materials you will need:
Ice lollie sticks, paper, fabric scraps and glue.
What to do:
Create a puppet for each season (for example Spring could be a child with flowers in their hair, Winter with a scarf).
Saving money is like planting seeds, don’t touch it and see how your money grows.
Every month, you put a little bit of your pocket money into your bank account. It might not seem like much at first, but just like seeds in the soil, something magical is happening.
Create a play where your season puppet tell your friends about saving money for a goal.
Ask Mom or Dad to show you your bank statement each month (it's like a report card on your savings). You’ll see your money growing, not just from what you saved, but also from interest. (Remember you read about interest in Uncle Rajesh and the hole filled with his gold.)
The longer you leave your money in the bank, the more it grows, all on its own.
So plant your savings, be patient and watch your money garden grow!
Once upon a time in Limpopo, a farmer named Mr Molefe had a goose named Thuli.
Each morning, she laid a golden egg. Real gold. Mr Molefe became rich.
But one day, he got greedy. “If I cut her open, I’ll get ALL the eggs at once!” He did. He didn’t.
Thuli was just a goose inside. No gold. No more eggs. No more fortune.
So he sat with his empty basket, full of regret.
My Golden Egg savings jar
Materials you will need:
• Plastic eggs or paper cutouts of eggs
• A jar or envelope
• Markers, stickers and paper
• On a piece of paper, write: “Golden Egg Tracker”
What to do:
1. Decorate your jar or envelope as your Golden Egg savings jar.
2. Every week (or day), “earn” a golden egg by saving a small amount of money or completing a helpful task for Mom, Dad or your siblings for money.
3. Write your goal on the jar (for example, “Save for a book” or “Save for a toy”).
4. Track your progress by adding a golden egg to your tracker each time you save.
5. After a set time (for example, 4 weeks), count the eggs and see how close you are to your goal.
Don’t rush or be greedy, let your money grow slowly and steadily.
You received birthday money and made a smart choice: you put it in the bank account your mom or dad opened for you. There, it was safe, no one could take it and you couldn’t spend it on a whim. Instead of disappearing quickly, your money stayed put and started to grow, thanks to interest. Remember interest? You read about it in Uncle Rajesh and the hole filled with his gold.
That’s what it means to take care of your money. You didn’t rush to spend it or try to make it grow too fast. You were patient, and your money rewarded you by growing quietly, month by month.
Take care of your money, and it will take care of you.
A story based on sneaky moves in the jungle.
Max the dog got lost in the jungle.
A lion spotted him and licked his lips.
Max panicked… until he saw old bones nearby.
“Mmm, that lion meat was tasty!”
he barked loudly.
The lion skidded to a stop.
“Wha—what?!”
A monkey, watching from a tree, shouted:
“That dog’s lying!
He
saw some bones and pretended!”
“Hop on my back!” the lion roared.
“Let’s teach him a lesson!”
Max spotted them coming. Gulp.
Then he yelled:
“Where’s that monkey? I asked him to bring me another lion
an hour ago!”
Frightened, the lion turned around and ran away as fast as he could.
Don’t make money moves based on scary stories or quick guesses. Learn the facts first.
You spotted a cool Pokémon card online and someone said it only costs R50. Excited, you were ready to spend your savings right away! But before buying, you asked Mom to help you check the details.
Good thing you did: the delivery cost was R100! That’s more than the card itself. If you hadn’t checked, you would’ve spent way more than you planned.
The lesson? Always check the facts before you act. Now you can keep saving and maybe find a better deal, or something even cooler!
Monkey quiz: Smart or sneaky
The sneaky monkey is up to no good again. He is spreading lies about saving money. Can you tell if the monkey is fooling you or is giving you smart advice?
The sneaky monkey says… 1 2 3 4
"If you spend all your money right away, you’ll never need to save!"
Is that smart or sneaky?
"Saving a little every week can help you buy something big later."
Hmm... monkey truth or monkey trick?
"Keeping your money in a bank makes it grow, using interest."
Sounds bananas, right?
"When you see something cool, you should buy it straight away, even if you don’t really need it."
Would a wise saver agree?
"Making a money goal can help you save up for something special."
The monkey might be telling the truth for once!
The answers are on page 38.
andthe jiggly juicy steak Jasper
Jasper the dog had a jiggly, juicy steak. He pranced across the bridge, chomp, chomp, chomp.
Underneath, in the water, he saw… another dog!
With a steak twice as big!
“Grrr”, Jasper growled. “I want that one too!” He leapt!
SPLASH!
The “other dog” vanished. So did his steak, whoosh, down the river.
All he had now was soggy paws.
Don’t lose focus on your goal by chasing someone else’s.
You had a plan: save your pocket money for months so you could enjoy the water park rides during your beach holiday in December. But then your friend got a new PS5 game, and it looked so cool! You wanted one too, so badly that you spent all your savings to get it.
At first, it felt exciting. But soon, the game wasn’t as fun anymore. And now, your holiday is coming, but your savings are gone.
The lesson? What looks better in the moment might just be an illusion. Stick to your goal. What you truly want is worth the wait and the joy lasts longer.
My steak, my goal!
• Draw a picture of the dog holding his steak.
• Then draw a picture of your own goal (for example, a toy, a trip, a book).
Around the goal, write or draw the things that might distract you from getting to your goal (for example, other toys, sweets, games).
Write on your drawing: I will stick to my goal!
the oak and
the river
reeds
A story about how life sometimes just happens.
Baba Oak stood proud, tall and wide, rooted deep by the riverside.
the oak and the river reeds
But when the storm howled, and the wind bent the skies, he cracked and he tumbled, despite his size.
The little reeds whispered, “We bend, but don’t break. We dance with the wind, and bend for safety’s sake.”
Riddles about saving
I’m small and round, I jingle a lot. You save me up in a piggy pot.
What am I?
I’m a place where your money can grow, not in the ground, but interest I show.
What
am I?
I’m not a toy, but I hold your dreams, you feed me coins and sometimes beans. I help you save for something sweet, like a doll or a LEGO treat.
What am I?
I’m something you earn when chores are done, I’m not a toy, but I can buy one.
What am I?
Answers on page 38.
It's okay to change your plans when things turn out di erently than expected.
You were saving up for a big LEGO set or a Labubu doll, something you really wanted. But then your friends asked you to go to the movies with them. It felt like a tough choice: skip the movie or give up on your dream toy.
Instead, you found a middle path. You used a bit of your savings for the movie and decided to save a little longer for the LEGO set or
You didn’t give up, you just adjusted.
Sometimes, you need to bend, not break.
Plans can change and that’s okay. What matters is staying true to your goals, even if the journey takes a little longer.
Foxy Lunga
and
the grapes in the sky
A story about a fox who, when he could not reach his goal, became bitter.
Foxy Lunga
Foxy Lunga and
the grapes in the sky
and the grapes in the sky
Foxy Lunga's thoughts while walking outside one day:
Saw grapes. So high. So juicy. So… ugh! I jumped. Missed. I leapt again. Failed. After the fifth try, I yelled: “WHO EVEN LIKES GRAPES? THEY’RE PROBABLY SOUR!”
Honestly, I just couldn’t reach them. But hating them made it feel better. (Sort of.)
Note to self: Next time, water your own grapevine. Jealousy makes you bitter.
Set your own savings goals.
Don’t chase someone else’s.
Maybe your friend spends their birthday money on a LEGO set or a Frozen doll, and you feel a twinge of jealousy.
But then you remember: you’re saving up for that Monster Jam truck or the jewellery-making kit you’ve been dreaming about.
Stick to your goal, you’re getting closer every day. Don’t let someone else’s choices distract you or derail your dream. Your goal is yours for a reason.
Stay focused and you’ll get there.
A challenge for you!
Now that you have learnt about saving your money, write down your goal on a piece of paper.
• What do you want to buy?
• How much does it cost?
• How much will you save every month?
• How long will it take you to reach your goal (how many months)?
Now you can track how you need to get to your goal.
A message from Senzo, the Save Squad leader
“Every rand you save, every smart money move you make, is like planting a fruit tree. Be patient. Be clever. Ask for help when you’re unsure. And most of all, have fun while learning to save.”
Every investment is filled with purpose, expectation and responsibility.
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The serious stu for the grown-ups to read
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Alexander Forbes Financial Services (Pty) Limited (registration number 1969/018487/07) is an authorised financial services provider (FAIS licence 1177) and earns fees and commission from the approved service providers for the referral of business. The information in this note is for educational purposes only and is not intended as advice.
Alexander Forbes Investments Limited is a licensed financial services provider, in terms of section 8 of the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services 37 of 2002, as amended, FAIS licence number 711, and is a registered insurer licensed to conduct life insurance business (10/10/1/155).
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