By the time students finish high school, they should be able to identify, assess and apply financial information to their own lives. They should be able to set short-, medium-, and long-term financial goals and develop a plan to reach them. Financial education should address how to develop income-earning potential and the ability to save, as well as the ability to meet financial obligations and use financial services effectively. It is also hoped that high school graduates will understand how to build and protect wealth.
If you want to start a financial education program for students in high school, expand on an existing program or add financial education components to your lesson plans that build on these concepts, you have come to the right place. The Office of Financial Education has identified numerous curricula for high school students. Much of it is free or low cost, and many can be downloaded directly from the Internet. In most cases, you can also visit the Office of Financial Education in Harrisburg to review the resources in person. All materials in our library have been reviewed by the Pennsylvania Office of Financial Education; however, inclusion in this list does not constitute endorsement of the materials.
Want to develop a full course in financial education? Several Pennsylvania schools have shared their course outlines for others to use as a springboard in developing their own. There are also several pre-packaged programs that work well as high school courses.
And, be sure to check the High School Resources section for even more great websites, games, and interactive tools.
What Works in High Schools
In high school, many young people get their first jobs or begin saving money for their first car. They also frequently receive credit card offers. And they are contemplating careers and college. All of these situations offer opportunities to teach real-world lessons about personal finance that will prepare young people for life after high school. Partnering with local businesses and financial institutions may help provide resources or speakers for personal finance lessons.
Tips for High School Teachers
- Help students develop a mock stock portfolio as early as possible in your lesson planning so they can follow their stocks throughout the course.
- Suggest students think about the products they and their families use as a basis for picking companies for their stock portfolios.
- Have students select careers and salaries that they will later apply to the budget lessons. Consider imposing limits that keep salary expectations modest, such as sticking to careers that require no more than a 4-year college degree.
- Suggest students ask their parents about how they handle some basic financial issues, e.g., how often do they reconcile their checking accounts and whether they get their free credit report every year.
- Explain compound interest by comparing how it works with savings versus debt.
- Use the Internet to determine realistic figures for spending and budgeting and select expenses that are relevant to students.
- Use current news items, Internet resources, and real-life experiences to engage students.
When students are talking about careers, one way to keep grandiose expectations in check is to have them discuss with their parents their strengths and weaknesses to see if the careers they’re talking about are a good fit.
Find guest speakers who not only know their content but can talk to kids and can connect with them.
To make lessons on saving relevant, focus on goals that are important to your students, such as big purchases revolving around prom and graduation, as well as paying for college.
“What really works is tailoring the content to your students. If only 10% of your students are going to college, lesson plans on saving for college are not relevant to them. Applying for car loans is.”
—Trish Dalecki, Laurel Valley Middle/High School
Financial Education Curricula and Lesson Plans for High School
Curricula at a Glance
The Office of Financial Education’s Directory of Financial Education for Youth contains information on more than 30 of the most popular financial education programs for young people from pre-school to college age. The lesson-by-lesson index helps users identify what topics are covered, the cost of the curriculum (many are free), and other available languages. Learn more...
Banzai!
Real-life scenarios on budgeting, taxes, medical expenses, credit cards, banking and other financial topics can be demonstrated through a variety of learning activities. Find lesson plans, an online teaching assistant and more. Learn more...
Basics of Saving and Investing: Investor Education 2020 (from the Investor Protection Trust and the Pennsylvania Securities Commission)
Teachers can download a free, Pennsylvania-specific copy of the teaching guide, which includes five units of study on saving and investing topics. The lessons also cover financial markets, investment choices and investment information sources, investment fraud and ethical behavior. Learn more…
Citi Financial Education Program (from Citi)
With thirteen lessons, this financial education program is available in both an interactive online version or instructor-led. All sessions include lesson plans as well as instructor materials. Also available in Spanish. Portions available in Chinese, Somali, Turkish, Dari and Portuguese. Learn more…
Consumer Jungle (from Young Consumers Education Trust)
Teachers with access to a computer lab can have students use the Consumer Jungle site to learn about topics such as buying a car, picking out a cell phone plan and living independently. The teacher site has complete lesson plans along with assessment activities that correspond to the student section. Learn more…
Everfi Financial Literacy™ (from Everfi)
This 10 module, six hour new-media learning platform uses the latest technology – video, animations, 3-D gaming, avatars, and social networking – to bring complex financial concepts to life for today’s digital generation. Learn more...
Financial Fitness for Life (from the Council for Economic Education)
The Financial Fitness for Life curriculum contains K–12 student activities, teacher and parent guides, a CD-ROM and a companion website. The materials, divided into four grade levels (K–2, 3–5, 6–8, and 9–12) and focused on a fitness theme, can be purchased through the Council for Economic Education.
Learn more…
Federal Reserve System Resources (from the nation’s 12 Federal Reserve Banks and Board of Governors)
All of the Federal Reserve System’s educational resources are compiled onto one site, and you can search by school level, type of material, topic, or keyword. All resources are free, and many can be ordered in print form. Learn more...
Financing Your Future (from the Council for Economic Education)
This DVD-based program includes five videos and 15 classroom activities (three per video segment). The DVD also includes lesson plans, a glossary of terms, and test questions. The companion website offers additional supplemental materials. Learn more…
FoolProof Financial Literacy Curriculum (from FoolProof Financial Education Systems) Students choose from eighteen highly interactive, self-grading group of online lessons called "modules" that were designed and created by young consumer advocates. The modules teach young people about money, financial responsibility and the realities of the free enterprise system. Learn more...
High School Financial Planning Program® (from the National Endowment for Financial Education)
The proven NEFE HSFPP program has been used to create a lasting change in money management behaviors for nearly 8 million teens and young adults. The updated version is easier to use and more flexible than ever--dividing the curriculum into six modules that can be used individually or together. Teachers can download lesson packs to get the lesson plan, PowerPoint presentation, student learning plan, activities and assessments for the lessons they want to cover. Student guides can be downloaded or ordered at no charge (yes – free ones every year for as many students as you will teach). Learn more…
Insurance Curriculum in a Box (from the Insurance Education Institute)
This free online program offers downloadable lesson outlines, video clips, PowerPoint presentations, and student worksheets. It addresses a variety of insurance topics including auto, homeowner and renter, life and health, and careers in insurance. Learn more…
Investing for Your Future (from the Rutgers, New Jersey Cooperative Extension)
This self-paced, home-study course was originally designed for adults but can also be used with high school students. An accompanying self-study guide can be used as a classroom teaching guide, and the CD-ROM contains about 240 PowerPoint slides for a six-week class, along with class marketing and evaluation materials. Learn more…
Junior Achievement (from Junior Achievement Inc.)
Junior achievement provides volunteers from the business world and community at large to teach Junior Achievement curriculum in grades K–12, providing real-life experience with the lessons, including its six-sequential themes: “Ourselves,” “Our Families,” “Our Community,” “Our City,” “Our Region” and “Our Nation.” Programs are offered through six Junior Achievement offices in Pennsylvania.
Locate one near you.
Learning, Earning and Investing (from the Council for Economic Education)
This 23-lesson print book curriculum is designed to teach high school students the benefits of and strategies for long-term investing success. The corresponding website offers a wide array of current data, investment education links, downloadable classroom visuals, interactive lessons and classroom-tested print lessons for students.
Lifetime Math (from teachers Megan Lawrence and Nancy LaBrue)
Created by two teachers to help students gain skills in the real-life math required to function as adults, this personal finance curriculum on CD-ROM features PowerPoint presentations and activities for students as well as a project for each unit. Learn more…
Money Savvy U (from Money Savvy Generation)
Designed to engage young teens in grades 6-10, each of the five lessons requires approximately 20 to 40 minutes of classroom time. Instructor materials consist of a scripted, animated presentation on CD-ROM. Students learn to build sound money management habits by practicing with the Cash Cache Personal Finance Organizer. Learn more…
MoneySKILL (from the AFSA Education Foundation)
The MoneySKILL personal finance course is an interactive, Internet-based curriculum that helps educate students on making informed financial decisions. It consists of 34 "how to" modules on income, money management, spending and credit, and saving and investing, each designed to be approximately 40 minutes long. MoneySKILL includes real-life simulations that allow creation of a personal financial plan from the time a student is financially independent of parents to the intended age of retirement. It is free and correlates to Jump$tart’s National Standards for Financial Education.
Learn more…
Money Smart for Young Adults (from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation)
This eight module curriculum combines activities, lesson plans, and practice scenarios to help teens and young adults learn the basics of handling their finances. The curriculum is free of any copyright restrictions and lacks commercial branding.
Learn more…
My Classroom Economy (from Vanguard)
My Classroom Economy enables any educator to teach children financial responsibility through fun, experiential learning. It's a simple classroom economic system based on the idea that students need to earn school "dollars" so that they can rent their own desks. Financial skills are introduced in activities in the elementary grades and expanded upon in middle school and high school. High students can open a simulated investment account through the Investment Banker. The Banker then manages the students' accounts through an investment simulator—a program designed to apply historical returns from randomly selected years. Learn more...
Practical Money Skills for Life (from Visa)
This website features resources to help consumers manage their money through all stages of life including full classroom curriculum mapped to state standards, financial calculators, educational games and resources appropriate for preschoolers through college. Educators can download the lesson plans, order a free DVD or access the 9-12 grade course as a free iBook on iTunes. Learn more…
Risk Management and Insurance Education (from the Griffith Insurance Education Foundation)
Use these free resources to educate students about risk management and insurance so they can make knowledgeable decisions on these issues in their everyday lives. Learn more…
Risky Business (from the Council for Economic Education)
Four 20-minute videos are accompanied by twelve lesson plans and activities that show students how to make wise decisions in life. Learn more…
Stock Market Game (from the Foundation for Investor Education)
Starting with a virtual cash account of $100,000, students strive to create the best-performing stock portfolio using a live trading simulation. In building a portfolio, students research and evaluate stocks and make decisions based on what they’ve learned. Teachers have successfully used the Stock Market Game program to enliven core academic subjects — including math, social studies, and language arts — and to teach the importance of saving and investing.
Learn more…
Take Charge of Your Finances (from Take Charge America and Family Economics and Financial Education)
This interactive and comprehensive curriculum is designed for students in grades 10-12. There are over 70 lesson plans available including values identification, understanding credit, and the benefits of investing. All materials can be downloaded at no cost; print copies may be purchased. Learn more...
Teaching Money Applications to Make Mathematics Meaningful (from Corwin Press)
This resource helps teachers weave real-life financial issues and personal money management into standards-based secondary mathematics lessons. It relates everyday math to credit cards, paying taxes, stock and bond yields, mortgages, buying a car, and more. Learn more…
Understanding Taxes (from the Internal Revenue Service)
The IRS offers an interactive tax education program online or as a package of downloadable print resources. Materials can be used as a complete unit or can be presented as individual activities/lessons as your schedule allows. Learn more…
Wall Street Journal Classroom Edition (from Dow Jones & Company, Inc.)
With a monthly publication for students, the venerated financial newspaper provides extensive support materials for teachers and a corresponding website. The monthly teacher guide offers suggestions for thoughtful discussions and skill-building activities and assignments that are linked to each issue's hottest articles. Subscribers to the Classroom Edition program also receive a daily subscription to The Wall Street Journal at no additional cost. Learn more…
Your Digital Dollars (from Consumer Action and Visa)
As more daily tasks are done on a computer or mobile device, students need to know how to protect their identity and data while banking or paying digitally. This 24-page packet, only available as a PDF file, provides guidance for teachers and team leaders that contains a detailed curriculum, classroom activities and take home worksheets. Learn more...
Your Life, Your Money (from PBS)
Find resources, activities and lesson plans to help young adults overcome financial challenges and learn money basics. There is a facilitator’s guide, blogs and Young Money Magazine: Special Edition Guide for Your Life, Your Money. Learn more…
