Child Well-Being

Housing Crisis Affecting Children & Families - Providingchildren with safe and secure housing increases their chance for success. The increase of foreclosures on family homes is having an adverse effect on children and youth. Nationally, an estimated 2 million children will be directly impacted by the mortgage crisis. They will be displaced, change school, separated from their friends and see their world from a new perspective. The following resources focus on how housing effects children identity, health, and school success.

Education Resources for Youth

National Financial Literacy Challenge - This fall, the U.S. Treasury Department will again conduct the National Financial Literacy Challenge. The National Financial Literacy Challenge is a 35-question, voluntary test offered to high school students via this web site. It provides an opportunity for teachers to recognize high school students for their financial literacy. As a public service from the U.S. Department of Treasury's Office of Financial Education, it is offered at no charge.

Financial Champions: Personal Finance Curriculum for Youth - An experiential curriculum for middle-school youth that teaches personal finance skills.

Money in Our Children’s Hands - Article describing how children learn about money and offering suggestions for guiding children about money management.

Kids.gov – The official kids portal to the U.S. government.  Includes links to specific government sites that would be of interest to children, such as A Tour Through the Bureau of Engraving and Printing.  Additional grade-level materials are available for youth starting their own business. 

Consumer Savvy  - A 4-H curriculum designed to teach youth to become informed and responsible consumers.  Includes project materials and instructor resource materials. 

Entrepreneurship Education - The 4-H Youth Entrepreneurship program works with youth to learn the practice of starting new organizations. Entrepreneurship ranges in scale from solo projects to major undertakings creating many job opportunities. The site is available on the Kentucky 4-H Agent Resource Guide (password protected). If you are unable to connect to the site and would like more information, contact Stephanie Blevins

4-H Reality Store – The Reality Store exercise introduces youth to the "realities" associated with adulthood--provision of food, clothing, shelter, etc. for a family and how these relate to career choices. Participants go through the "store" purchasing housing, transportation, child care, etc. By the end of the simulation, students usually see a relationship between career, lifestyle, and education. The site is available on the Kentucky 4-H Agent Resource Guide (password protected). If you are unable to connect to the site and would like more information, contact Stephanie Blevins

4-H Dollars & Sense - The “4-H Dollars & Sense” program is designed to introduce elementary school students to concepts in budgeting and economics. This program is a spin off of the popular 4-H RealityStore program created in Kentucky. This program focuses on 4th – 6th graders in the schoolsystem. Students receive an allowance for a given month and then have the opportunity to spend that allowance at the booths provided.

Y.E.S. (Youth Enlightenment Series). A credit program from Equifax for youth. Emphasizes information on credit and responsible financial behavior. Includes leader’s guide, transparency masters, and handouts. Helpful when speaking to high school groups. For more information regarding this program, contact Suzanne Badenhop

Money Skills You Need for Life: Hands on Banking - Learn about all aspects of money management, including saving, banking, investing, buying a home, etc. Curriculum is targeted to youth, teens, and adults. This is not a service or program associated with the University of Kentucky.

Energy Education

National Energy Education Program (NEED) – Promoting energy conscious students.  Includes a teacher’s resource catalog for instruction materials and kits.

Financial Planning

NEFE High School Financial Planning Program – A high school financial planning program available in schools across the country.  Teaching youth how to manage their money and learn to create their own financial plan and budget, while proposing a personal saving and investing plan.  Student select strategies to use in handling credit and managing their debt, in addition to learning many more skills.  
   
Kentucky LifeSmarts Homepage – LifeSmarts is a consumer education program geared to high-school students.  Students compete to improve their consumer knowledge in the areas of personal finance, health and safety, the environment, technology and consumer rights and responsibilities.

MyMoney for Kids – Website developed by the U.S. Financial Literacy and Education Commission, providing financial education resources. Educational resources for children include  H.I.P. (History In Your Pocket) Pocket Change,  Youth Currency Education Materials, Kidz Privacy, and Money Math: Lessons for Life