Sure Thing or Lucky Guess?
A message says: send €10 now and get €20 by Friday — guaranteed, no risk. It never explains what the money does or who is responsible.
Ready-to-print worksheets
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In the year workbook
My Money YearThis lesson has a companion in the printable year workbook: pupil pp. 122–123, teacher companion p. 100.
Learning objectives
- Underline two words or phrases in the offer that should make you pause
- Explain why a €10 coin toss paying €20 on heads or €0 on tails is not a certain outcome
- List two facts you would need before believing a money claim
Vocabulary
- Risk
- The chance that something might go wrong or lose value.
- Chance
- How likely something is to happen.
- Guarantee
- A promise something is certain — real money is rarely guaranteed.
- Reward
- A nice thing you get for doing something well.
Materials
Minute-by-minute flow
6′
Hook
Teacher does
Read the story: a fictional message says “Send €10 now and get €20 by Friday. Guaranteed, no risk!” with no explanation of the activity or who is responsible. Ask which card facts are known and what to find out.
Students do
Say what the message promises and what it leaves out.
12′
Model
Teacher does
Think aloud through task 1: underline two words or phrases that should make you pause — “guaranteed,” “no risk,” the short deadline and the unexplained doubling.
Students do
Mark two warning phrases.
20′
Practise
Teacher does
Set tasks 2 and 3: if a coin toss offered €20 on heads and €0 on tails after paying €10, is the outcome certain? Then write two facts you would need before believing a money claim.
Students do
Explain two outcomes are possible so nothing is guaranteed, and list facts such as who is claiming, what the money does, risks and fees.
4′
Discuss
Teacher does
Surface the misconception: do not treat coin-toss betting as an activity to try — it is only a paper model of uncertainty.
Students do
Explain the coin is a model, not a game to play.
3′
Exit
Teacher does
Pose the reflection: what should you do with a too-good-to-be-true offer?
Students do
Say: pause, do not send money and check independently with a trusted adult.
Check for understanding
Can the learner name warning signs in the “guaranteed” claim and explain that the €10/€20 coin toss has no certain result?
Exit ticket
A too-good-to-be-true offer like “€10 now, €20 Friday, guaranteed” should make me… (pause, not send money, and check with a trusted adult).
Support
Compare the claim with a simple sure outcome: keep €10 safely.
Stretch
Explain why a large possible reward may come with large uncertainty or a scam risk.
Home connection
Find one “win big” or “guaranteed” advert and name two facts you would need before believing it — never send money to check.