Think Before You Buy: Hands-On Mindful Spending Workshop
Through interactive activities and the DIMS SCORE® Calculator, GIFTING SENSE workshops help students make informed spending decisions that align with their values and family needs - in an engaging environment. Let’s normalize that anyone can learn to be “good with money” by pausing, gathering information and reflecting, before spending. Perfect for classrooms, community groups and families.
Online | 60 min
Think Before You Buy:
Hands-On Workshop
Gifting Sense workshops move thinking before buying from something kids do to “get what they want”, to something that helps them want items and experience that make sense.
Children learn how to make informed spending decisions that align with their family's needs and values in an engaging way. Let's normalize that being a thoughtful consumer does not mean you never get to do or buy anything fun.

Workshop trusted by





Key Benefits
Reduce Waste
You and your family stop wasting time and money buying under-appreciated gifts or clothes. Fewer items end up in landfills.
Hear from our participants
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"I have always highly recommended the DIMS SCORE® Calculator to my coaching participants and viewers. It’s an invaluable tool that helps young people make thoughtful financial decisions. This tool empowers teens to think critically, adding tremendous value to their lives, something I would have appreciated as a teen.”Mathura A Kannan
Author & Host of Money Matter$ -
"We're so fortunate to have workshops on financial literacy from Ms. Karen Holland from Gifting Sense! Her presentations are highly interactive, lively and packed with teen-friendly wisdom on managing your money. Ms. Holland's take on young people and their finances is relatable to them, equitable and specific, enabling students to take action in the moments after her presentation. She's an engaging and dynamic speaker who can captivate an audience big or small. The Brearley School highly recommends Gifting Sense!"Tim Brownell
Head of Middle School Student Life, The Brearley School Middle School -
This is the exact structure my family needs - both me and the kiddos. We have conversations about money (wants and needs, specifically about the difference between those, and making a plan to achieve a goal). BRILLIANT!! I am so excited to bring this teaching into my family life.
Parenting Boys Peacefully Parent
Book a workshop with us
Booking a workshop with Gifting Sense® is simple and quick. Just select your preferred date and complete the online registration. Our user-friendly process ensures reserving your spot is hassle-free!
Free Resources
We'll send you everything you need for the workshop, including a class set of pencils, downloads, and handouts. To run your own workshop, return to the Teacher Tab and click on the navy blue "Run your own workshop" button.

Free Glossary
What is a warranty? You know what Sales Tax is, but do your students? Download and distribute the Gifting Sense Glossary. Consider confirming the learning that happens during your workshop by incorporating some of the terms into an upcoming vocabulary or math test.
Questions?
Find everything you need to know here
All Gifting Sense tools and resources are free to use. The only exception is our workshops offered through Outschool, which include a small platform fee set by Outschool.
You can absolutely conduct your own Gifting Sense workshop. Familiarize yourself with the DIMS SCORE® Calculator, and then use one of the downloadable lesson plans found on the "For Teachers" Page. Don't forget to check out the FAQ's we've received from Educators who have gone before you in this blog post.
Workshops naturally age up and down, and across economic realities, as students self-select the possible purchase they calculate the DIMS - DOES IT MAKE SENSE? SCORE for.
We can even build you your own DIMS SCORE® calculator, with questions addressing your community's primary concerns and a customized avatar. We know students sometimes have to "see it to believe it," and now there's a way for them to see themselves in the tool they are using. A custom DIMS SCORE® calculator will incur a development fee.
With enough advance notice, we can conduct in-person workshops in the greater Metropolitan Toronto and New York City areas. Otherwise, we are happy to Zoom with a classroom, Club Meeting, or teaching team so educators can conduct workshops with their own students in their classrooms.
If an entire school district is interested in implementing our approach to early financial education in its schools, write to us. We'll do what we can to conduct a travel-efficient series of in-person workshops.
We provide everything you need to conduct an in-person or online workshop. Our mindful spending tool, the DIMS - DOES IT MAKE SENSE?® SCORE Calculator is always available without registration or crossing a paywall. You can find a downloadable handout announcing a workshop, a glossary, lesson plans, and even a pencil order form (so your students can receive a free GIFTING SENSE® pencil with the mnemonic "What's the DIMS SCORE®?" written on its side) on the Teacher Page. Still feel like you're missing something? Write to us. We're here to help!
Still have more questions?
Check out our full FAQ page or reach out to us directly!
Contact us
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