Find financial literacy activities
Find activities that can help you teach and nurture the building blocks of financial capability across the curriculum.
These classroom activities can be completed within a single class period. Each activity comes with a teacher guide and supporting student material, so it’s easy to implement whether you’re an experienced personal finance teacher, integrating financial literacy into another subject area, or supplementing your existing financial education curriculum.
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Creating a savings first aid kit
Ideal for: High school (9-10), High school (11-12)
Students learn the importance of developing an emergency savings fund to deal with unexpected challenges and unplanned expenses.
Saving each payday
Ideal for: High school (9-10), High school (11-12)
Students use a real-world simulation to learn how saving a little money each payday can be a successful strategy for saving.
Creating a buying plan
Ideal for: High school (9-10), High school (11-12)
Students practice creating a buying plan and apply this strategy to provide buying advice to others.
Reflecting on needs versus wants
Ideal for: High school (9-10), High school (11-12)
By thinking about their own expenses, students explore how differentiating between needs and wants can inform daily financial decisions and rules to live by.
Spending scenarios
Ideal for: High school (9-10), High school (11-12)
Students consider everyday spending decisions by working through real-world scenarios.
Choosing the best cell phone plan for you
Ideal for: High school (9-10), High school (11-12)
Students research the features and costs of cell phones and cell phone plans and use a decision matrix to compare options and determine the best one for their needs, wants, and budget.
Talking with your family about paying for higher education
Ideal for: High school (9-10), High school (11-12)
Through Internet research, students build their awareness of scholarships, grants, loans, and work-study options and then share their findings with a parent or guardian.
Learning how FAFSA works
Ideal for: High school (9-10), High school (11-12)
Students learn about how the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) works by completing a simulation activity.
Using a student loan calculator
Ideal for: High school (9-10), High school (11-12)
Students use a student loan calculator to calculate monthly loan payments and how much they can save on total loan costs by paying a little extra each month.
Communicating ways to pay for higher education
Ideal for: High school (9-10), High school (11-12)
Students research ways to pay for their higher education and create a brochure to record their findings.
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