While not much time is spent in K-12 educating students about money, once they graduate, it will become critically important. “Not a day will go by that they’re not thinking about money. How to make it, how to spend it, how to save it,” says John Pelletier, director of the Center for Financial Literacy at Champlain College.
April is Financial Literacy Month, and to that end, we’ve curated financial literacy lessons and activities to help you help your students better understand the importance of how to make, manage, invest, and protect their money.
Financial Literacy Lessons & Activities
Teaching Financial Literacy
In addition to basic financial literacy, Pelletier shares with Tech & Learning how to teach students about cryptocurrency and NFTs, inflation, and other key financial concepts
TeachFinLit.org
Geared toward high school students, this resource features detailed lesson plans, complete with videos and outside sources, on topics such as budgeting and spending and credit and debt. It also offers multiple financial literacy curricula for new teachers.
Next Gen Personal Finance
A wealth of free multimedia financial curriculum resources, in addition to providing online personal development courses in finance geared specifically to teachers. Also features a virtual conference for teachers on April 5.
Understand The Personal Finance Ecosystem
The National Endowment for Financial Education (NEFE) offers this research-informed framework that describes the factors influencing an individual’s state of financial well-being. It focuses on understanding foundational financial factors, such as basic numeracy and problem-solving skills, plus understanding values, beliefs, socioeconomics, and more.
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Financial Literacy Activities
This federal site features more than 130 activities for school-aged students, searchable by grade level, activity duration, and topics, which range from saving and investing to understanding the FAFSA and comparing financial aid offers.
Khan Academy Financial Literacy
Featuring 16 units that help to build 73 life skills, this free course guides students (at their own pace, if wanted) to understand topics such as taxes, credit, investments, car buying, and even scams to avoid.
Uncle Jed’s Barbershop
Designed for grades 3-5, this lesson focuses on the book Uncle Jed’s Barbershop, about an African-American barber who, despite significant setbacks, saves enough money to buy his own barbershop. From the story, students learn about saving, savings goals, opportunity cost, and more. Also features a card game.
Next Gen Personal Finance Arcade Games
Eleven personal finance games that use arcade-style graphics, amusing characters and music to engage kids in financial scenarios they are likely to face in the near future. Topics covered include the lure of cryptocurrency, paying for college, career choices, managing credit, and more. Games are accompanied by reflection worksheets. While students don’t need an account to access games, teachers’ resources require a free, verified education account. Available in English and Spanish.
FDIC Money Smart Games
From the Federal Deposit Insurance company comes this extensive collection of financial games covering diverse subjects from credit cards to disaster planning. Presented in the style of a TV game show, each episode is hosted by Isaiah and Kiara, who guide students in playing each round and offer an occasional, fairly lame financial joke. Best for younger students who require a lot of explanation. No account required, but users can create a free account to save progress. Available in English and Spanish.
Visa’s Financial Football
Super fun, action-packed digital football game that incorporates financial literacy questions interspersed between gameplay. Users choose their favorite NFL teams to begin the game, toss the digital coin, and select defensive strategy. Games range from 5-30 minutes, with three levels of difficulty. Teachers’ resources include PDF lessons and activities.
Banzai Free Interactive Financial Education
A Tech & Learning Best for Back to School 2024 award winner, Banzai’s comprehensive, easy-to-navigate financial education platform is 100% free for teachers and students. It offers personal finance courses at the elementary, middle, and high school level as well as college-and-career readiness and digital citizenship classes. All courses include games, articles, and worksheets; free printed worksheets will be mailed upon request. Currently available in English and Spanish, Banzai! is fully compliant with COPPA, FERPA, and other student privacy regulations.
Jump$tart Clearinghouse
This extensive database of financial literacy resources is searchable by format, type of resource, grade, price, language, and special-needs category. To find the many free resources, simply enter “0” in the maximum cost box. Included are lesson plans, games, workbooks, curricula, quizzes, and much more. All resources align with the National Standards for Personal Financial Education, are age appropriate, and do not attempt to promote specific financial products or services. No account is required to start using this helpful website.