Leadership, problem-solving and learning how to deal with failure are just some of the skills that children and teens can delve into with the launch of a new entrepreneurship course in the capital.

Hosted by Kids Finance Initiative, Entrepreneurship with a Twist is a four-week course running from 3rd November that aims to prepare children from seven to 18 years old for the careers market of the future.

“Entrepreneurship is a buzzword nowadays,” explained Marilyn Pinto, founder of Kids Finance Initiative. “But when they teach children about it, it’s more about how to write a business plan or market their idea.

“Kids don’t need to write a business plan – what they need is to understand what the essence of entrepreneurship is and what it means. These are the types of conversations we need to be having with our children.”

With a focus on areas including soft skills development, assertiveness and strategies to cope with failure, the course aims to help children define what they want for the future, now.

“Kids will need critical thinking, problem-solving and collaborative skills for the future,” Marilyn added. “Part of that is understanding entrepreneurship. In the fourth industrial revolution, these skills will be the differentiator between artificial intelligence and [our children], and just having core academic skills will not be good enough.

“The jobs that they are going to apply for in the next ten years don’t exist right now. It’s skills like these that will take them to the next level, help them connect with people, have empathy and find ways to grow their mindset.”

The Entrepreneurship with a Twist course costs AED 1,000 per child. To find out more, contact: [email protected], facebook.com/kidsfinanceinitiative