Why it works
Economics and personal financial literacy are increasingly recognized as essential for every student, yet often taught abstractly or not at all. Research and standards point to teaching core economic reasoning (scarcity, trade-offs, incentives, markets) and practical financial skills (budgeting, saving, credit, decision-making) in concrete, relevant, and applied ways, connected to students' real lives and choices, so students can reason economically and make sound financial decisions.
The research: Council for Economic Education standards; research on economic and financial education.
The run-of-show
Choose your slot. The agenda, timings, and length update to match.
The core activity: make it concrete and relevant
Teachers leave with an economics or finance concept made concrete and applied to a real decision.
- Pick an economics or financial-literacy concept.
- Make it concrete through real decisions, trade-offs, and relatable examples.
- Connect it to students' actual lives and choices.
- Have students apply the reasoning to a real decision.
Facilitator notes
- Make abstract concepts concrete, and connect to real decisions.
- Teach economic reasoning and practical finance.
- Apply it to real choices.
Adapt it
- <b>Elementary:</b> needs and wants, saving, simple choices.
- <b>Secondary:</b> economic reasoning, budgeting, credit, real decisions.
- <b>All settings:</b> concrete, relevant, applied.
Participant handout
One page for every teacher. Print it, or save it as a PDF.
Economics & Financial Literacy: make it real
<b>Life skills:</b> economic reasoning and practical finance, made concrete, relevant, and applied to real decisions.
- The economics or financial-literacy concept:
- How I make it concrete and relevant:
- How I connect it to student lives and choices:
- The real decision students apply it to:
- Where it has been too abstract:
Make it stick
Concrete and applied:
- Make it concrete and relevant.
- Apply to real decisions.
- Bring a lesson that made economics stick to the next PLC.