Each April, groups ranging from consumer agencies to the White House focus on financial awareness and capability so now is the perfect time for adult educators to review resources for teaching financial literacy skills. If you are looking for new tools, consider the following guides, courses, collections, games and exercises.
Teaching Skills That Matter in Adult Education, a federal ongoing project initiated by WIOA, set out to develop the framework for adult educators to teach important transferable skills through specific approaches applied to particular topics. One of those topics is financial literacy. A complete Teaching Skills that Matter toolkit has been developed and includes a variety of resources for teaching each topic area.
If your learners need to build math and language arts skills, KET’s Workplace Essential Skills online course can help. Basic math skills are essential to financial literacy. Learning through Workplace Essential Skills keeps adults engaged as academic content is contextualized in high-demand careers while videos highlight modern workplaces.
PBS LearningMedia, a free repository of classroom resources, offers a collection of five-minute videos on topics such as money mistakes, how to buy a house, stock market basics, scams and more!
The Federal Trade Commission has an online library addressing numerous everyday issues related to financial capabilities. The library defines the topic and leads learners through what to know and what to do as the issue might relate to them.
If your learners would enjoy learning through gaming, the FDIC has what you need! Your Income and Expenses teaches important experiences related to income, pay statements and expenses in 15-minute segments. Students earn token coins to win rounds and may receive a certificate of completion.
Budgeting can be one of the most important financial literacy skills for anyone. It is never too early or too late to understand the importance of budgeting. A simple worksheet like this one from KET Adult Education can help learners think through the income to expense calculation.
For ESL Learners, EnGen, an educational publishing partner with KET, offers a robust list of courses for adult learning pathways. Check out this course on how to understand employee benefits.
Thank you for tackling this oh-so-important topic and doing all you can to help adult learners become financially capable!