EverFi: Future Smart - Financial Literacy
Lesson 1: Welcome Mayor!
Students are introduced to the course storyline and reflect on their own personal financial priorities, habits and mindsets though a “Financial Personality Test”.
Learning Objectives: Students will be able to…
Learning Objectives: Students will be able to…
- Identify and reflect on their personal values, financial habits and mindsets
- Understand the goals and features of the course
Lesson 2: Smart Shopping
Students are introduced to David, a middle school student that wants to redecorate his room on a limited budget. Students must prioritize David’s budget, use comparison-shopping methods to decide which specific items to buy, research upcoming spending decisions, and make smart choices about when to spend or save.
Learning Objectives: Students will be able to…
Learning Objectives: Students will be able to…
- Define and identify opportunity cost in a given scenario
- Describe and prioritize the components of a budget based on an individual’s preferences
- Prioritize and differentiate between an individual’s needs and wants
- Apply comparison shopping methods, such as gathering price and quality information, comparing spending & non-spending alternatives, and comparing unit price information.
- Analyze whether information from sources are accurate and reliable when comparing products and services
Lesson 3: Ways to PAy
Students meet Trevor, a college student who needs help saving for an end of summer trip, while managing his day-to-day expenses. Students must help him select a job, review his paycheck and credit card statement, and help him make decisions about when to utilize different payment types.
Learning Objectives: Students will be able to…
Learning Objectives: Students will be able to…
- Choose when to use different available payment methods (including cash, debit, credit, mobile, online, direct deposit, prepaid cards)
- Model positive strategies for using credit
- Summarize the effects of not paying off a credit card balance in full
- Assess the benefits and costs of using credit
- Describe the potential consequences of using “easy access” credit
- Understand the importance of a credit score, and recognize the components that affect your score
- Describe different sources of income, including wages, salaries, stipends, and benefits.
- Identify common withheld state and federal taxes by examining a paycheck
Lesson 4: Investing in You
Students advise Sydney, a high school student, on her future career path. Students must help her narrow down the career path she’d like to pursue – by examining her skills and interests, the career’s income potential, and it’s education and training requirements. Afterwards, students help Sydney find ways to reduce the out-of-pocket cost of her first year of post-secondary education.
Learning Objectives: Students will be able to…
Learning Objectives: Students will be able to…
- Match personal skills and interests to various career options
- Compare education and training requirements, income potential and primary duties between multiple jobs of interest
- Compare the costs of post-secondary education with the potential increase in income and lifetime earnings from a career choice
Lesson 5: Growing a Business
Students help Mia, a business owner, calculate her monthly profit and loss, and devise a strategy to save up for new capital for her business. Students must help the business owner open savings and checking accounts, grow her money faster with a certificate of deposit, and make monthly transaction decisions.
Learning Objectives: Students will be able to…
Learning Objectives: Students will be able to…
- Analyze a budget to calculate revenue, expenses, and profit/loss
- Model how to open a deposit account at a financial institution
- Compare different interest-bearing accounts, including savings, checking and certificates of deposit, based on their interest rate, liquidity, minimum balance requirements and fee structure
- Describe how regular contributions and compounding frequency impact the growth of savings
- Summarize the effect of inflation and deflation on the price of goods and purchasing power over time
Lesson 6: Your financial Future
Students accompany Chris, as recent college graduate, as he goes through a “life simulation”, helping him make insurance and investment decisions at critical life milestones. Students help Chris select different insurance policies (and experience how random, unexpected occurrences can lead to financial loss), and help him adjust his investment portfolio as he nears retirement age.
Learning Objectives: Students will be able to…
Learning Objectives: Students will be able to…
- Model insurance decisions that can be used to minimize the risk of financial loss
- Categorize the kinds of expenses that typical auto, renters’, homeowners’ and health insurance policies cover
- Describe the differences between a premium, deductible, copayment, and coinsurance
- Investigate the use of liability insurance to cover accidental bodily harm or damage to another person’s property
- Describe and compare stocks, bonds, and mutual funds based on their typical risk and return levels
- Suggest appropriate investment types for people based on their risk tolerance and investment growth timeframe
- Explain how money invested regularly over time may grow exponentially
- Explain how stock markets facilitate the buying and selling of securities
Lesson 7: Build Your Blueprint
Using their knowledge and experience from the course, students set their own financial goals and make plans for their future. The students’ answers create a portfolio piece – their “Blueprint” – that can be printed or shared with others. This personalized document details the student’s future career interests, plans for post secondary education, and next action steps.
Learning Objectives: Students will be able to…
Learning Objectives: Students will be able to…
- Understand that attitudes and values affect financial decisions
- Identify and reflect on their personal values, financial habits and mindsets
- Apply systematic decision making to setting and achieving financial goals
- Construct and prioritize personal financial goals
- Determine the cost of achieving a goal
- Give examples of how decisions made today can affect future opportunities
- Devise a strategy to finance the costs of post-secondary education