Mississippi Financial Literacy Standards: Helpful Teacher Resource

Mississippi Personal Finance Course Outline Alignment

Find out which of our lessons or games reinforce the individual
knowledge statements from the Mississippi Personal Finance Course Outline.

Legend:

Long-Term Game
Comprehensive Chapter
Short Lesson
Interactive Calculator
Includes Automatically-Graded Assessment

Standard	Activity	Long-Term Game	Comprehensive Chapter	Short Lesson	Interactive Calculator	Graded Assessment
Personal Decision-Making
Define the following terms: • Wants • Needs • Values • Goals • Scarcity • Opportunity costs • Trade-off	Budget Game – Core Component Lesson – Break Free From Money Stress with a Budget Lesson – Pay Yourself First: A Simple Yet Powerful Way to Build Wealth Lesson – Opportunity Cost Lesson – Why is there scarcity?
Differentiate between wants and needs.	Budget Game – Core Component Lesson – Break Free From Money Stress with a Budget Lesson – Pay Yourself First: A Simple Yet Powerful Way to Build Wealth
Identify the various factors that influence wants and needs.	Budget Game – Core Component Lesson – Pay Yourself First: A Simple Yet Powerful Way to Build Wealth Lesson – Proven Techniques to Stop Overspending Lesson – Achieve Financial Goals with a Spending Plan
Apply opportunity costs and trade-offs to personal decision-making	Budget Game – Core Component
Recognize and analyze the consequences of a decision.	Budget Game – Core Component
Earning and Reporting Income	Activity	Long-Term Game	Comprehensive Chapter	Short Lesson	Interactive Calculator	Graded Assessment
Identify types of earned income (i.e., compensation): wages (e.g., minimum, overtime, holiday, etc.), salary, tips, commission, and so forth.	Lesson – What’s in Your Compensation Package?
Identify types of unearned income: • Government sources (i.e., transfer payments) • Private sources (e.g., interest, dividends, gifts, etc.)	Lesson – What’s in Your Compensation Package? Lesson – Uncovering Hidden Income Taxes You Owe
Discuss variable income, such as that of an entrepreneur.	Lesson – What’s in Your Compensation Package? Lesson – Starting a Business 101 101 Lesson – What is Entrepreneurship?
Discuss how education, experiences, technology skills, and so forth affect future careers and income.	Lesson – Planning Your Career Path Lesson – Go to College or Start Working? Lesson – Starting a Business 101 101
Identify the training and education necessary to obtain a desired job.	Lesson – Planning Your Career Path Lesson – Go to College or Start Working? Lesson – Financing Your Education
Identify and discuss the common challenges of citizens in low-income areas related to financial decision making and job placement (i.e., payday loans, staffing agencies, background checks, required drug tests, etc.).	Lesson – How to Use Debt to Your Advantage Lesson – A Beginner’s Guide to Borrowing Wisely Lesson – What to Do When You Need Money Fast
Calculate gross income, including hourly wage, overtime, holiday pay, commission, and so forth.	Budget Game – Core Component Lesson – Payroll Best Practices Lesson – What’s in Your Compensation Package?
Explain the various types of taxes and their impact on income and purchasing power.	Lesson – Tax Basics You Need to Know Lesson – Sales Tax: Who Pays, Collects, and Why? Lesson – Income Tax Filing Tips & Tricks
Discuss and give examples of deductions (e.g., taxes, insurance, etc.).	Lesson – Tax Credits & Deductions You Need to Know
Calculate net income.	Budget Game – Core Component Lesson – Payroll Best Practices
Describe information and required forms relevant to the completion of state and federal income tax forms.	Lesson – Tax Basics You Need to Know Lesson – Income Tax Filing Tips & Tricks Lesson – Tax Credits & Deductions You Need to Know Lesson – Uncovering Hidden Income Taxes You Owe
Banking and Financial Institutions	Activity	Long-Term Game	Comprehensive Chapter	Short Lesson	Interactive Calculator	Graded Assessment
Identify and discuss various types of financial institutions (e.g., banks, credit unions, online banking, etc.).	Lesson – Choosing the Best Banking Option for You
List and describe the products and services provided by financial institutions (e.g., savings, checking, credit cards, loans, safe deposit boxes, etc.).	Lesson – Choosing the Best Banking Option for You Lesson – How Debit Cards Work Lesson – Credit Cards: Terms, Fees, and More
Identify steps involved in opening a checking account	Lesson – Choosing the Best Banking Option for You Lesson – How Debit Cards Work
Compare and contrast different types of checking accounts offered by various institutions.	Lesson – Choosing the Best Banking Option for You
Describe and demonstrate the steps involved in the bank reconciliation process.	Lesson – Reconciling accounts
Identify and describe the various options for monetary transactions.	Lesson – What is Money? Lesson – A Beginner’s Guide to Borrowing Wisely Lesson – Credit Cards: Terms, Fees, and More Lesson – How Debit Cards Work Lesson – What to Do When You Need Money Fast
Budgeting	Activity	Long-Term Game	Comprehensive Chapter	Short Lesson	Interactive Calculator	Graded Assessment
Identify short- and long-term financial goals to construct a personal spending and/or savings plan.	Lesson – Proven Techniques to Stop Overspending Lesson – A Strategy to Build Wealth, Not Debt Lesson – Pay Yourself First: A Simple Yet Powerful Way to Build Wealth
Define and categorize fixed and variable expenses.	Budget Game – Core Component Lesson – Break Free From Money Stress with a Budget Lesson – Proven Techniques to Stop Overspending
Research budgeting applications and discuss the pros and cons of each.	Lesson – Break Free From Money Stress with a Budget Lesson – How Do You Stop Impulse Purchases? Lesson – The Art of Juggling Many Bills in a Pinch
Identify various rules for budgeting to determine what percent of income is allocated to each type of expense.	Lesson – The Art of Juggling Many Bills in a Pinch Lesson – A Strategy to Build Wealth, Not Debt Lesson – Pay Yourself First: A Simple Yet Powerful Way to Build Wealth
Evaluate an example monthly statement/budget and identify income, fixed expenses, variable expenses, and so forth.	Budget Game – Core Component
Create a monthly budget using a given scenario.	Budget Game – Core Component
Discuss how income and spending patterns change throughout the life cycle.	Lesson – Spending and Saving Plans Lesson – The Cost of Raising a Family Lesson – Preparing For Retirement Lesson – A Strategy to Build Wealth, Not Debt
Buying Goods and Services	Activity	Long-Term Game	Comprehensive Chapter	Short Lesson	Interactive Calculator	Graded Assessment
Distinguish between goods and services.	Lesson – Why You Buy What You Buy
Apply comparison shopping practices. Identify differences of name-brand and generic items. Demonstrate couponing and the use of various applications used to help save money and compare prices.	Lesson – How Do You Stop Impulse Purchases? Lesson – Achieve Financial Goals with a Spending Plan Lesson – Planning Long-Term Purchases
Research and identify various ways to purchase goods and services (e.g., online, storefronts, retail, wholesale, etc.).	Lesson – What is Money? Lesson – A Beginner’s Guide to Borrowing Wisely Lesson – Credit Cards: Terms, Fees, and More Lesson – How Debit Cards Work Lesson – What to Do When You Need Money Fast
Examine the impact of advertising and marketing on consumer demand and decision making in the global marketplace. Discuss impulse buying and buyer’s remorse. Discuss influence of product placement, packaging, and other characteristics that influence purchasing.	Lesson – Spending and Saving Plans Lesson – Why You Buy What You Buy Lesson – Analyzing Consumer Behavior Lesson – Ethics In Marketing
Describe the role that supply and demand and market structure play in determining the availability and price of goods and services. Define supply and demand and market structure. Discuss how these factors influence price and purchasing behavior.	Lesson – Supply and Demand Examples in the Stock Market Lesson – Benefits of Competition Lesson – What is Economics?
Describe how to identify and report fraudulent behavior and practices when purchasing goods and services.	Lesson – How to Avoid Identity Theft, Scams & Fraud
Saving and Investing	Activity	Long-Term Game	Comprehensive Chapter	Short Lesson	Interactive Calculator	Graded Assessment
Differentiate between saving and investing.	Budget Game – Core Component Stock Game – Core Component Lesson – How to Develop an Investing Strategy Lesson – A Strategy to Build Wealth, Not Debt Lesson – The Secret to a Comfortable Retirement
Identify and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of various savings and investing plans.	Lesson – How to Develop an Investing Strategy Lesson – Achieve Financial Goals with a Spending Plan
Apply criteria for choosing a savings or investment instrument (e.g., market risk, inflation risk, interest rate risk, liquidity, and minimum amount needed for investment).	Lesson – How to Develop an Investing Strategy Lesson – How to Choose Stocks Strategically Lesson – Decoding What Moves The Market Lesson – Getting (and understanding) stock quotes Lesson – Knowing Your Risks & Risk Tolerance
Compare and contrast simple and compound interest and the impact each have on savings.	Activity – Watch How Your Savings Could Grow Lesson – Demystifying the Impact of Interest Rates
Analyze the power of compounding and the importance of starting early in implementing a plan for savings and investing.	Activity – Crack the Code to Becoming a Millionaire Activity – Watch How Your Savings Could Grow
Apply the concept of Time Value of Money.	Activity – Net Present Value (NPV) Calculator Lesson – Time Value of Money
Explain how and why the stock market functions.	Stock Game – Core Component Investing101 Certification Lesson – What is the New York Stock Exchange? Lesson – Decoding What Moves The Market
Examine the fundamental workings of the Social Security System and the system’s effects on retirement.	Lesson – The Secret to a Comfortable Retirement Lesson – The Anatomy of Unemployment and other programs Lesson – The Ultimate Employee Guide
Using Credit	Activity	Long-Term Game	Comprehensive Chapter	Short Lesson	Interactive Calculator	Graded Assessment
Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of using credit.	Budget Game – Core Component Lesson – A Beginner’s Guide to Borrowing Wisely Lesson – How to Use Debt to Your Advantage
Explain the need for a sound credit rating and the importance of annually monitoring one’s own credit rating.	Lesson -Using Credit Lesson – Credit Report Lesson – How Borrowers Manage Personal Debt
Read and interpret a credit report.	Lesson -Using Credit
Define interest as a cost of credit and explain why it is charged.	Lesson – Credit Cards: Terms, Fees, and More Lesson – Demystifying the Impact of Interest Rates
Explain how the amount of principal, the period of the loan, and the interest rate affect the amount of interest charged.	Lesson – Credit Cards: Terms, Fees, and More Lesson – Demystifying the Impact of Interest Rates
Calculate a payment schedule for a loan.	Activity – Use the Credit Card Payments Calculator Activity – Calculate Your Car Loan Payments
Evaluate various loan scenarios to discern the best option available (e.g., annual percentage rate [APR], cash back, etc.).	Lesson – What to Do When You Need Money Fast Lesson – How to Use Debt to Your Advantage
Research and discuss ways to identify and prevent identity theft related to credit cards and loans. Identify the most common and current methods of identity theft to be aware of. Analyze various real-life scenarios of identity theft and discuss how they could have been avoided.	Lesson – Credit Cards: Terms, Fees, and More Lesson – How Debit Cards Work Lesson – What is Money?
Types of Insurance	Activity	Long-Term Game	Comprehensive Chapter	Short Lesson	Interactive Calculator	Graded Assessment
Identify risks in life and how to protect against the consequences of those risks.	Lesson – Knowing Your Risks & Risk Tolerance Lesson – Life Insurance: The Ultimate Safety Net Lesson – What is Wealth?
Explain the role of insurance in financial planning as a wealth-building and wealth preservation tool.	Lesson – Life Insurance: The Ultimate Safety Net
Identify and discuss the various types of insurance and basic insurance concepts. Define basic insurance terms (e.g., deductible, premium, etc.). Identify the various types of insurance and the legal expectations for certain ones.	Lesson – Why Health Insurance is So Expensive Lesson – Car Insurance: How to Lower Your Rates Lesson – What’s Not Covered in Renter’s Insurance? Lesson – What Damage Does Home Insurance Cover?
Explain how insurance needs vary among individuals, families, seasons of life, and so forth. Discuss the various factors that influence choice of insurance type and amount. Develop a recommended insurance coverage for a given scenario with various factors, including family/individual, income, age levels, and so forth.	Lesson – Mortgage Options for First-Time Homebuyers Lesson – Life Insurance: The Ultimate Safety Net Lesson – What Damage Does Home Insurance Cover?