The cartoon books will introduce a number of illustrated characters, each representing an entrepreneurial skill, with a professional children’s book illustrator working with the team at the University of Strathclyde.

Academics have been awarded £80,994 in grant funding by the Scottish Government to create the storybooks and linked activity packs for Primary 1-3 children.

Based around five key skills that make up an entrepreneurial mindset: Resilience, Empathy, Creativity, Collaboration and Optimism, playful characters will embody each skill. The RECCO Crew echoes the approach taken by Pixar Animation’s film Inside Out, which turns complex and abstract notions from Plutchik’s Theory of Emotions into an easily accessible cartoons with tangible characters.

Dr Suzanne Mawson, project lead and reader in entrepreneurship at the Hunter Centre, said: “Entrepreneurial attitudes and mindset interventions are most effective when they are introduced early in the formative years of young people.

“New research shows that the best time to intervene on the development of a mindset is not among older age groups, but from around five to seven years old. Non-cognitive skills linked to mindset are set at this developmental stage, and this is when educational interventions are at their most effective.”

Dr Lucrezia Casulli, senior lecturer in entrepreneurship at the Hunter Centre, added: “We hope to see children in this age group develop an awareness of the agency they have in making the world a better place if they play to their strengths, but also collaborate with others on things that are not their forte.

“The RECCO Crew characters are personable and relatable. They are not superheroes and they are not out of reach, yet together they can do great things by drawing on each other’s strengths.”

The research team also includes Professor Sarah Dodd, and the project builds on previous work to cultivate entrepreneurial mindset skills within university students as part of Strathclyde Inspire’s sector-leading Entrepreneurship for All approach, and a new textbook Entrepreneurial Thinking – Mindset in Action.

Recipients of the Scottish Government Entrepreneurial Education Pathways Competitive fund were announced on 15 November. Total funding of £829,346 was awarded to seven projects, with Strathclyde the only university to be awarded funding.

Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes said: “It is never too early to equip our young people with the mindset and skills that will prepare them for the path ahead. Resilience, creativity, empathy are not just key attributes in the entrepreneurial mindset but also valuable lessons that will stand them in good stead for the future.

“The Scottish Government’s latest round of entrepreneurial education funding seeks to offer new ways to help the next generation of young people take the first crucial steps on their entrepreneurial journey and I look forward to The RECCO Crew doing just that.”