School financial literacy lesson summaries
1. Earning
Earning money gives people more choices in life. This module introduces students to ways they can make money and what it means to be paid an hourly rate.
2. Saving
Money in a bank account is relatively safe but there is an additional benefit – it can earn interest! This module introduces students to the importance of saving and the differences between checking accounts and savings accounts.
3. Interest
Earning interest is an easy way that everyone can make money. This module introduces simple and compound interest and explains the benefit of starting to save early.
4. Career choice
Choosing a career they will enjoy is probably the second most important choice a student will make (after choosing a life partner!). This module starts them thinking about what is important when choosing a career.
5. Resume
Preparing a resume is usually the first step towards securing a meaningful job. Students will have fun thinking about their strengths and the things they like about themselves.
6. Job application
Writing a good cover letter is an important part of a job application. As well as learning the job hunting process this module is a good opportunity for students to practice their reasoning (why they should get the job!).
7. Pay and tax
It’s great to be paid for doing a job, whether it’s via wages or salary. However, it’s important for students to realize that some of this goes as income tax. We discuss why income tax is necessary and how it is calculated.
8. Smart spending
This module explores four ways students can get the best value when spending their hard earned money. Buying cheap is not always the answer! It also discusses the pressure they might experience from peers or advertising to buy things.
9. Budgets
Budgets are the most powerful tool students have available to control their spending. This module shows students how to create a budget and explains what they should do if their expenses are greater than their income.
10. Banking
Your students will be getting bank accounts soon, if they haven’t got them already. This module teaches them how money gets in and out of their accounts and how they can keep track of it.
11. Paying
Students are used to paying for things with cash and many have their own debit card. This module introduces other ways of making payments that they need to know about - a really good one for them to discuss with their parents!
12. Borrowing
People borrow money when they need something straight away but don’t have sufficient cash to pay for it. Borrowing puts the borrower into debt but this is ok if the money has been borrowed for a good reason and they have the ability to repay it.
13. Loans
There are a number of different loan options if we need to borrow money. This module explores the impact that providing collateral has on the interest rate charged.
14. Loan repayments
Borrowing money can get people into strife but it’s usually ok if the borrower can afford the repayments. This module shows students how to factor loan repayments into a budget and what to do if they can’t afford them.
15. Rent or buy
Most people would rather buy their own house than rent one. This module introduces students to the cost of houses and uses budgets to help them figure out whether they can afford to buy or rent.
16. Mortgages
Getting sufficient money together to buy a property is increasingly difficult as house prices continue to outstrip earnings growth. If students learn the basics of property finance now it will improve their chances of being able to own their own property in the future.
17. Buying property
Buying a property is the biggest purchase many people make in their lives. This module introduces students to the process. If they learn the basics now they can approach the opportunity with more confidence as adults.
18. Rental property
This module introduces students to the basics of earning money via owning a rental property.
19. Certificates of Deposit
This module introduces students to investing as a way of creating wealth without having to be paid to do something. CDs are introduced as a better investment than savings accounts because they pay higher interest.
20. Property investment
Rental property ownership is a common form of investment. This module builds on the property rental lesson and explains why rental property is a medium return, medium risk investment.
21. Stocks
Owning stocks is a common form of investment. This module introduces students to the basics of earning money via capital gains and dividends.
22. Collectibles
Collectibles are investments in rare items that (hopefully) will increase in value over time. The items include art, coins, stamps, antiques and cars. Collectibles are a fun, high risk/high return investment and this module emphasizes the risk side.
23. Business basics
Businesses make the world go round. They produce most of the products and many of the services we enjoy in the world today. This module introduces different types of business and the jobs students might expect to do if they work in one.
24. Marketing
Marketing is telling customers about your product or service. Students learn some simple tips on the best way to do this, then for fun they get to market your school!
25. Promotion, selling and price
Promotion is how you get your marketing message to your customers. Advertising is a common way to get it to new customers; loyalty programs are a good way to get it to repeat customers. Then you’ve got to set the price and make the sale!
26. Profit and loss
A business’s profit is the reward for the effort given and the risk taken by it’s employees and owners. This module explains how to prepare a simple profit and loss statement and what profit a business might expect as an acceptable return on investment.
27. Warranties and cash
This module teaches students what to do if the product they have purchased doesn’t work like it should or stops working altogether. It also talks about the ways they can keep their cash safe, both at home and overseas (if they are lucky enough to travel!).
28. Insurance
Insurance helps protect us financially if things go wrong. This module explains how insurance works, in particular House, Contents, Car, and Health insurance.
29. Online security
This module reinforces your cyber security policies, particularly around spending money on Ecommerce sites and not sharing account/ password/ personal details with strangers.
30. Net wealth
The final module explains why students should save to invest and why they should invest to grow their net wealth. It also explains the importance of protecting their net wealth by diversifying their investments.