From the Federal Reserve Bank's website:
You can download the complete curriculum (.pdf) or in individual lessons. The curriculum (which is all free) includes the following:
Unit A: Know Your Dough
Lesson 1: Invest in Yourself (PDF, 62 KB)
Students are divided into groups to produce name tents. Each of four groups in the classroom
produce name tents in a different way to highlight different levels of human capital. The students
identify ways in which people invest in human capital and the link between investment in human
capital and earning income.
Lesson 2: “W” Is for Wages, W4 and W2
(PDF, 443 KB)
Students compute the gross pay for a fictional John Dough given his hourly wage and the number
of hours worked. They compare gross pay to net pay. They learn what FICA and federal income
taxes are. They learn how to complete a W-4 form and what a W-2 form is.
Unit B: KaChing!
Lesson 3: Cash the Check and Track the Dough (PDF, 163 KB)
Students participate in an activity to learn about checking accounts, savings accounts and check-cashing
services. Students learn the components of a check, and they organize and enter information
into an account register for a fictitious person in order to determine the person’s balance.
Students learn why maintaining account records is important. Students balance a monthly
account statement.
Lesson 4: Your Budget Plan (PDF, 152 KB)
Students work in pairs to participate in a “Track Star” game that illustrates positive and negative
spending behaviors. Each pair of students analyzes the “Track Star” results, identifies effective and
ineffective budgeting behaviors, and generates a list of budgeting principles.
Lesson 5: Savvy Savers (PDF, 82 KB)
Students calculate compound interest to identify benefits of saving in interest-bearing accounts.
They learn the “rule of 72” and apply it to both investments and debt. They learn that there is a
relationship between the level of risk for an investment and the potential reward or return on that
investment.
Unit C: All about Credit
Lesson 6: Credit Reports—and You Thought Your Report Card Was Important (PDF, 127 KB)
Students complete an activity sheet and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of using credit.
Students read a scenario about a young person’s use of a credit card and answer some questions
regarding repayment. Students learn about credit history, credit reports and credit-reporting agencies.
Lesson 7: Creditors’ Criteria and Borrowers’ Rights and Responsibilities (PDF, 88 KB)
Students discuss key terms related to credit and learn how creditors use capacity, character and
collateral as criteria for making loans. Students learn about credit rights and responsibilities.
Groups use role-play scenarios in order to identify and discuss the rights and responsibilities of
using credit.
Lesson 8: So How Much Are You Really Paying for that Loan? (PDF, 73 KB)
Students learn what a payday loan is and the high cost involved in using such a loan. Working in
groups, students calculate an annual percentage rate (APR) on a short-term loan.
Lesson 9: To Rent-to-Own or Not to Rent-to-Own? (PDF, 94 KB)
Students review the elements of a contract. They discuss the characteristics of rent-to-own contracts
and compare the cost of those contracts with the outright purchase of goods.
Other Files
Introduction (PDF, 4.1 MB)
Glossary (PDF, 45 KB)
Standards correlation (PDF, 62 KB)
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