Financial Essentials

Values drive every dollar. This lesson defines financial literacy and introduces conscious budgeting as the necessary act of choosing to fund one value over another.

Income is more than a paycheck. This lesson defines gross and net income, explains mandatory deductions, like federal and FICA taxes, and utilizes a Form W-4 activity to demonstrate withholding.

A budget is a spending plan. This lesson discusses choosing between needs and wants, and making tradeoffs. Students begin the Life Scenarios pretest and game.

Banking is the system used to track and protect money. Learn about account types, deposit insurance, fees, and the difference between credit and debit cards. Students continue the Life Scenarios game.

Debt is a tradeoff where you spend future income to satisfy a present want. In this lesson, students finish the Life Scenarios game, vocab, and posttest, and learn more about the price of debt. This includes interest, APR, and types of debt.

Before there's a score, there's a report. This lesson outlines what a credit report is, where it comes from, how to read it, and how to fix it.

Time gives money more years to benefit from compounding. This principle is the foundation of the exponential growth curve seen in long-term savings.

Time is a tool to manage investment risk and build wealth for the future. This lesson discusses risk and return, diversification, and types of investments. Students complete the pretest and start the Advanced Budgeting simulation.

Risk management is using specific strategies to lower or avoid financial harm. This lesson focuses on insurance as a common risk management strategy. Students continue the Advanced Budgeting game.

Reflect on lessons learned in the unit. Students finished the Advanced Budgeting game, vocab, and posttest.