Learning About Money: A Guide for Students

From the earliest age, everyone learns that money is very important. At first, you see your parents using money to buy things at the store, but as you get older, you see that money is also used for payments you don't see, like paying the mortgage or the power bill. The things you want also cost money: New clothes, games, and phones all come at a cost. It's really important to learn from a young age how to manage your money so that you'll be able to afford to buy the things you want and need.

Activities

• 15 Fun Money Activities for Kids: There are lots of different ways to learn about how to use money, from starting a savings jar to helping to buy the ingredients to cook a meal.
• Three Real Money Activities for Learning: These hands-on activities are great for helping younger kids to learn the different values of coins.

Online Games

• Financial Football: This game combines football with personal finance to make learning fun.
• Hit the Road: A Financial Adventure: Does a road trip sound exciting? Drive around the country and see the sights without going broke in this game.
• Money Magic: Help Enzo the magician save money on the road to his big show in Las Vegas.
• Plan Your Dream Prom: Prom is fun, but it's also expensive! Practice figuring out how to pay for your dream prom in this game.
• STAX: Ready to build wealth through investing? STAX lets players build their virtual fortunes.
• The Uber Game: Working in the gig economy is the reality for a lot of people, and this game can teach you about the financial challenges that come with gig work.

Online Lessons

• Secret Millionaires Club: Billionaire Warren Buffett produced this online animated series about money management.
• Balance Your Checking Account: Practice filling out a checkbook and keeping your bank account balanced with this activity.
• Payback: Going to college is really expensive, and you'll need to be able to pay your way through school while still having a good experience on campus. Use this tool to practice managing your money through college.
• Spent: Budgeting and living within income is hard even for many grown-ups. Try this virtual experience to see if you can make it through a month starting with only $1,000 to your name.
• Money Talks: Should You Be Listening? Look through this activity book to learn about how you think about money and what you should change about how you think.
• Claim Your Future: How much money you make has a big impact on your entire life. Take a look at whether the life you want to have will fit into the income you might make here.
• Misadventures in Money Management: This online graphic novel can help you learn about what not to do when managing your money.

Printable and Downloadable Resources

• The Complete Money Workbook: A group of New York CPAs published this workbook that teaches good money habits.
• The Piggy Bank Deposit Slip: Practice making out deposit slips before you head to the bank for the first time.
• Making Change: Print out these worksheets to practice making change.
• Bank Comparision Chart: Use this chart to help you compare the fees and benefits of different banks.
• Balancing a Checkbook: This lesson plan includes a step-by-step guide and printable activity on how to balance a checkbook.
• Kids' Budget Planner: Work through the nuts and bolts of writing out budgets with this printout.

Personal Finance

• Fun Ways to Learn About Money: Making a budget with your allowance money can help you learn more about how to manage money.
• 15 Ways to Teach Kids About Money: Well-known personal finance writer Dave Ramsey published this article with ideas about helping kids develop good money habits.
• How to Teach Your Kids Good Money Habits: Learning to save and learning how and when to spend are important lessons for all kids to learn.
• How to Teach Your Kids About Finance: Debt, savings, and digital payments are some of the personal finance topics covered in this article.
• Seven Financial Education Tips Kids Won't Learn in School: Budgeting, credit, and investing are some of the topics covered here.
• 15 Things a Personal Finance Expert Suggests Parents Do to Help Their Kids Be Good With Money: Author Beth Kobliner provides information on how to be successful with money.
• Want to Teach Your Kids About Money? Start by Including Them in the Conversation: This NPR article looks at why your parents should talk to you about money.

Lesson Plans

• Create a Money Graph: The U.S. Currency Education Program released this lesson plan that can help you learn about the different denominations of money and how to read a bar graph.
• Counting Money: At the end of this lesson, early elementary students will be able to correctly identify coins and their worth.
• Starting Your Own Business: Lots of kids are interested in starting their own businesses, ranging from lemonade stands to slime-making popups, and this lesson plan can help you understand the economics behind being a business owner.
• Financial Literacy for Kids: Topics covered here include what money is, how to shop wisely, and what to do with your allowance.
• Money Math: Lessons for Life: These money lessons can help you be successful as an adult.
• What Can I Afford? Everyone has a budget, so it's important for everyone to learn how to manage their money to make responsible financial decisions.