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CurriculumMoney Basics

Money Basics

What money actually is, how it holds value, and the vocabulary every other module builds on.

  1. What Is Money, Really? Why a piece of paper is worth something, and the three jobs money has to do. 📄 Read-aloud
  2. Budgeting: Needs, Wants and the 50/30/20 Rule A simple, memorable framework for splitting income that works at any income level. 📄 Read-aloud
  3. Saving vs Spending: Building the Habit Why saving is a habit before it's a number, and how to make it automatic. 📄 Read-aloud
  4. Money Basics: Checkpoint 1 Covers what money is for, budgeting, and building a saving habit. 5 questions
  5. Setting SMART Financial Goals Why vague goals like 'save more' rarely work, and a framework that does. 📄 Read-aloud
  6. Understanding Your Paycheck: Gross vs Net Income Why your paycheck is smaller than your salary, and where the difference goes. 📄 Read-aloud
  7. Taxes 101: What Gets Taken and Why The basic shape of income tax, without the parts that only apply to complicated situations. 📄 Read-aloud
  8. Money Basics: Checkpoint 2 Covers goal-setting, paychecks, and how taxes work. 5 questions
  9. Emergency Funds: Your Financial Safety Net Why an emergency fund is the first savings goal, and how big it actually needs to be. 📄 Read-aloud
  10. Inflation and the Shrinking Dollar Why the same amount of money buys less over time, and what that means for saving. 📄 Read-aloud
  11. Needs Change: Budgeting Through Life Stages Why the same budget framework produces very different plans depending on where you are in life. 📄 Read-aloud
  12. Money Basics: Checkpoint 3 Covers emergency funds, inflation, and budgeting through different life stages. 5 questions
  13. Financial Scams and How to Spot Them The patterns behind most financial scams, so you can recognize one before it costs you. 📄 Read-aloud

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