Take a look at our newest educational resources to help students understand and apply economics, personal finance, and career readiness concepts.
Money Hungry
Earning, Spending, and Saving Lesson: (9-12) In this lesson students will consider ways to earn money, to understand how it is spent, and to identify benefits of saving money for the future.
Entrepreneurship Lesson: (9-12) In this lesson, students will participate in an interactive activity to explore the roles of entrepreneur and consumer, while employing mathematical skills in calculating totals and percentages tied to their decisions. Students will also work collaboratively to create and analyze aspects of a business, including a pricing menu of associated goods and/or services and identifying risks involved, target consumers, and profit earning opportunities.
Uncle Willie and the Soup Kitchen (K-3)
This lesson addresses the social issues of homelessness and hunger through the eyes of a young boy who serves as a role model when he volunteers at a local soup kitchen. Students will categorize goods and services and create a handmade telescope in which to view the world around them.
The Bridge Home
Decision-Making Lesson: (4-6) Viji may just be 11-years old, but she finds herself responsible for herself and her older sister. She must make good decisions if she and Rukku are to survive while living on the streets of Chennai, India. Can a decision-making model help her make good choices? This lesson introduces students to a problem-solving tool that encourages critical thinking and analytical skills while applying economic concepts like human capital, earning income, and more.
Opportunity Cost Lesson: (4-6) This lesson centers around choices faced by characters in the book, The Bridge Home, by Padma Venkatraman. Through the activities, students learn about the main characters, Viji and her sister Rukku, and the problems they encounter both in and out of their home in Chennai India. Students will put themselves in the sisters’ shoes to evaluate given choices and identify the opportunity cost. Students will also rank various choices while participating in an interactive problem-solving group activity.
Employment Lesson: (6-8) This lesson will introduce middle school students to economic concepts related to employment as they interactively explore human capital needed for certain jobs and apply workforce-ready skills such as teamwork, leadership, critical thinking, and more.
Darnell Rock Reporting features a middle schooler who learns about homelessness and how to use his voice to bring about positive changes in his community. Students will ideate and respond to questions about the story, develop persuasive writing of their own, evaluate the persuasiveness of others writing, and identify human capital of primary characters from the book. Students will also work collaboratively to analyze the costs, benefits, and trade-offs of various choices and align appropriate soft skills with different career paths. The concepts included can be utilized in ELA, social studies, economics, and career pathways.
External LinkMimi's Village introduces students to health care practices and services, as well as healthcare professions, including differences across geographic regions and income levels. It also exposes students to African culture and how concepts such as median income and standard of living intersect with economic conditions.
External LinkMy Papi Has a Motorcycle highlights Spanish-language and Hispanic culture, as well as immigration, through a story about a little girl who celebrates the businesses and types of jobs in her community and how they have changed.
External LinkThe Night Worker lesson, based on a children's story, will introduce students to productive resources related to certain jobs and how human capital helps workers perform their jobs. It also focuses on labor-based/trade jobs.
The Negro Leagues microlessons and materials include multi-discipline instruction and cultural components that can help students understand and celebrate the legacy of the Negro Leagues Baseball and how they transformed generations. Use these lessons to teach economics by inspiring critical thinking, creativity and active learning for kindergarten through 12th grade learners.