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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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Showing 20 matches out of 136 activities

Showing 20 matches out of 136 activities

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  • Playing a banking fact and fiction game

    Updated

    Ideal for: High school (9-10), High school (11-12)

    Students listen to statements about banking and then walk to one side of the room or the other if they think the statement is fact or fiction.

    Key information

    Topic:
    Save and invest (Banking options, Choosing how to save), Protect (Managing risk), Borrow (Getting loans)
    Activity duration:
    45-60 minutes

    Building block

    • Financial habits and norms
    • Financial knowledge and decision-making skills

  • Exploring community colleges

    Updated

    Ideal for: High school (9-10), High school (11-12)

    Students learn about the benefits of community college and consider whether attending community college could be a good option to help them prepare for their future.

    Key information

    Topic:
    Earn (Learning about careers, Making money), Spend (Paying for college)
    Activity duration:
    45-60 minutes

    Building block

    • Financial knowledge and decision-making skills

  • Understanding how much student debt you can afford

    Updated

    Ideal for: High school (9-10), High school (11-12)

    Students calculate how much they can afford in monthly student loan payments based on what their salary might be after graduating from college or another post-secondary institution.

    Key information

    Topic:
    Spend (Paying for college), Borrow (Getting loans)
    Activity duration:
    45-60 minutes

    Building block

    • Financial knowledge and decision-making skills

  • Choosing a student loan that’s right for you

    Updated

    Ideal for: High school (9-10), High school (11-12)

    Students use a graphic organizer to compare and contrast federal and private student loans to help them find the one best suited for their needs.

    Key information

    Topic:
    Spend (Paying for college), Borrow (Getting loans)
    Activity duration:
    45-60 minutes

    Building block

    • Financial knowledge and decision-making skills

  • Comparing higher education choices

    Updated

    Ideal for: Middle school (6-8), High school (9-10), High school (11-12)

    Students explore higher education options by comparing similarities and differences between two colleges near where they live.

    Key information

    Topic:
    Earn (Learning about careers, Making money), Spend (Paying for college)
    Activity duration:
    45-60 minutes

    Building block

    • Financial knowledge and decision-making skills

  • Learning how federal financial aid can help you pay for higher education

    Updated

    Ideal for: High school (9-10), High school (11-12)

    After watching a video describing basic types of federal financial aid, students answer content-based questions about financial planning for college.

    Key information

    Topic:
    Save and invest (Saving for college), Spend (Paying for college), Borrow (Getting loans)
    Activity duration:
    45-60 minutes

    Building block

    • Executive function
    • Financial knowledge and decision-making skills

  • Cosigning loans and sharing credit

    Updated

    Ideal for: High school (9-10), High school (11-12)

    Students research credit and analyze scenarios on sharing credit cards and cosigning loans.

    Key information

    Topic:
    Borrow (Getting loans, Managing credit)
    Activity duration:
    75-90 minutes

    Building block

    • Executive function
    • Financial knowledge and decision-making skills

  • Differentiating between secured and unsecured loans

    Updated

    Ideal for: High school (9-10), High school (11-12)

    Students explore characteristics of secured or unsecured types of credit by playing a sorting game.

    Key information

    Topic:
    Borrow (Getting loans, Managing credit)
    Activity duration:
    45-60 minutes

    Building block

    • Financial knowledge and decision-making skills

  • Distinguishing between credit myths and realities

    Updated

    Ideal for: High school (9-10), High school (11-12)

    Students analyze and make judgments about credit and borrowing statements to better understand the reality of debt.

    Key information

    Topic:
    Borrow (Getting loans, Managing credit)
    Activity duration:
    45-60 minutes

    Building block

    • Financial habits and norms
    • Financial knowledge and decision-making skills

  • Role-playing borrowing and lending

    Updated

    Ideal for: High school (9-10), High school (11-12)

    Students take on the role of a borrower or a lender to pose questions, apply formulas to calculate interest, and evaluate data to inform borrowing and lending decisions.

    Key information

    Topic:
    Borrow (Getting loans, Managing credit)
    Activity duration:
    75-90 minutes

    Building block

    • Executive function
    • Financial knowledge and decision-making skills
Activities align with the My Money Five principles introduced by the statutorily created federal Financial Literacy and Education Commission.