A list of topics for teaching about Finances for Teenagers: Let's get started

Here are some topics that come from an interesting website.

To students:  Your task, students, is to choose the topics that you want to learn about.  Bring your questions to the next class.

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Some powerpoints for teenagers to use

Tool: What information should young people know about Finances?

The Ten Basic Money Skills

In her book, Raising Financially Fit Kids, Joline Godfrey gives a list of lessons called “The Ten Basic Money Skills”:¹¹

                1.            How to save

                2.            How to keep track of money

                3.            How to get paid what you are worth

                4.            How to spend money wisely

                5.            How to talk about money

                6.            How to live on a budget

                7.            How to invest

                8.            How to exercise the entrepreneurial spirit

                9.            How to handle credit

                10.          How to use money to change the world

Twelve Months of Financial Literacy

Dr. Lewis Mandell outlines the 12 most important concepts for young people to learn, presented as a once a month concept.

1. Pay yourself first (understanding why, how and where to save)
2. What you make is not what you take (gross pay vs. net pay)
3. Start saving young, but it’s never too late to begin (the power of compounding)
4. Compare interest rates (shop for both savings and investment as well as credit)
5. Don’t borrow what you can’t pay for
6. Budget
7. Money doubles by the “Rule of 72”
8. High returns = High risk
9. If it seems too good to be true, it probably is

10. Plot a financial road map
11. Your credit past is your credit future
12. Stay insured

“National Standards in K-12 Personal Finance Education”

The Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Education, an association of organizations interested in advancing financial literacy among youth, has developed the following standards for youth financial literacy education. Note: These standards are called “national” but are not endorsed by any Federal agency but do nonetheless provide an outline of core financial education topics to cover.

A. Financial Responsibility and Decision Making
Overall Competency: Apply reliable information and systematic decision making to personal financial decisions.

Standard 1: Take responsibility for personal financial decisions.
Standard 2: Find and evaluate financial information from a variety of sources.
Standard 3: Summarize major consumer protection laws.
Standard 4: Make financial decisions by systematically considering alternatives and consequences.
Standard 5: Develop communication strategies for discussing financial issues.
Standard 6: Control personal information.

B. Income and Careers
Overall Competency: Use a career plan to develop personal income potential.

Standard 1: Explore career options.
Standard 2: Identify sources of personal income.
Standard 3: Describe factors affecting take-home pay.

C. Planning and Money Management
Overall Competency: Organize personal finances and use a budget to manage cash flow.

Standard 1: Develop a plan for spending and saving.
Standard 2: Develop a system for keeping and using financial records.
Standard 3: Describe how to use different payment methods.
Standard 4: Apply consumer skills to purchase decisions.
Standard 5: Consider charitable giving.
Standard 6: Develop a personal financial plan.
Standard 7: Examine the purpose and importance of a will.

D. Credit and Debt
Overall Competency: Maintain creditworthiness, borrow at favorable terms, and manage debt.

Standard 1: Identify the costs and benefits of various types of credit.
Standard 2: Explain the purpose of a credit record and identify borrowers' credit report rights.
Standard 3: Describe ways to avoid or correct debt problems.
Standard 4: Summarize major consumer credit laws.

E. Risk Management and Insurance
Overall Competency: Use appropriate and cost-effective risk management strategies.

Standard 1: Identify common types of risks and basic risk management methods.
Standard 2: Explain the purpose and importance of property and liability insurance protection.
Standard 3: Explain the purpose and importance of health, disability, and life insurance protection.

F. Saving and Investing
Overall Competency: Implement a diversified investment strategy that is compatible with personal goals.

Standard 1: Discuss how saving contributes to financial well-being.
Standard 2: Explain how investing builds wealth and helps meet financial goals.
Standard 3: Evaluate investment alternatives.
Standard 4: Describe how to buy and sell investments.
Standard 5: Explain how taxes affect the rate of return on investments.
Standard 6: Investigate how agencies that regulate financial markets protect investors.

Passport to Financial Literacy (from the State of Oklahoma)

High school students in Oklahoma are required to study Financial topics.  Additional information is available at sde.state.ok.us/Curriculum/PFLP/.   These state standards are provided as an example; other states may have similar areas for instruction for high school students.

The Passport to Financial Literacy shall include, but is not limited to, the following 14 Areas of Instruction:

1. Understanding interest, credit card debt, and online commerce;
2. Rights and responsibilities of renting or buying a home;
3. Savings and investing;
4. Planning for retirement;
5. Bankruptcy;
6. Banking and financial services;
7. Balancing a checkbook;
8. Understanding loans and borrowing money, including predatory lending and payday loans;
9. Understanding insurance;
10. Identity fraud and theft;
11. Charitable giving;
12. Understanding the financial impact and consequences of gambling;
13. Earning an income; and
14. Understanding state and federal taxes.

This list of topics comes from this website:

http://idaresources.acf.hhs.gov/page?pageid=a047000000B7oxQ

This material is copyrighted by the idaresources at ACF.HHS.Gov

This list of topics is available for teenagers to bring to class.