SCHOOLS: Frequently Asked Questions

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Yes.  The 21 MONEY IQ™ online curriculum is 100% independent from outside interests, like the government or political parties. Our curriculum is also independent from for-profit sponsors of products or services, like banks or insurance companies. 

The only content used for the creation of the 21 MONEY IQ™ online curriculum is content produced by the National Financial Educators Council (NFEC). The NFEC’s materials are also independent educational resources. No outside interest influenced the materials or message 

–no national sponsors, no government affiliation, and no products are promoted.

This means there are other free or low-cost resources available. However, there is a tradeoff. These "free" materials are developed and promoted by for-profit sponsors, which means the content and goal of the materials is to teach learners how to access and use their products. The 21 MONEY IQ™ online curriculum is produced to support the healthy development of financial habits for each learner. You can learn more about this HERE.

Yes. Every student receives a user license to access the 21 MONEY IQ™ online curriculum. This means, students can choose to access the 21 MONEY IQ™ online curriculum from anywhere, including using their hand-held devices.

The 21 MONEY IQ™ online curriculum, upon demand, will also install the EqualWeb widget to improve its accessibility and ensure compliance to make online lessons accessible to students with different learning needs. Some of these accessibility features could include closed captions, text-to-speech functionality, adjustable font sizes, flexible deadlines, and the ability to customize learning paths, allowing for more personalized learning experiences that cater to individual needs.

Yes. The 21 MONEY IQ™ team suggests parents and caregivers to engage with learners in completing their student workbook activities. The more engaged adults and children are in each household, the more successful learners will be at developing good financial habits. 

See OUR APPROACH page. At the bottom of that page, you can explore the RESOURCES section to access educational content that can support learners at home in their financial literacy development.

Yes. The 21 MONEY IQ™ online curriculum is designed to reach as many youngsters as possible. Because of the unrecognized service that public school teachers, support staff, and school building administrators offer to children, each school employee is eligible to enroll children in their families at this special rate, even if these children are not enrolled in public school. 

The 21 MONEY IQ™ team recognizes the professional services and donations of school staff and would like to thank them by giving access to early financial literacy for their family members. Please contact us at info@21moneyiq.com using the subject line: school staff for student enrollment details.

Yes. Every lesson is complemented with practice to facilitate and reinforce learning. Upon enrollment in the 21 MONEY IQ™ online curriculum, in addition to receiving access to curricular online content, each student receives color-printed grade-level student workbooks to six consecutive grade levels: 3rd grade, 4th grade, 5th grade, 6th grade, 7th grade, and 8th grade.

No. Each lesson is followed up with practice, which require access to the student workbooks. Instructional and learning theories strongly promote the implementation of practice to facilitate and reinforce new learning. Hence, the 21 MONEY IQ™ team expects each learner to have access to both digital and printed learning materials.

There are three different ways in which students have access to assessing their learning and growth:

1. At the end of each lesson, students are required to answer a quiz about key concepts learned in the lesson. Students are encouraged to correctly answer all quiz questions before moving to the next lesson.

2. At the end of each quiz, students are encouraged to answer questions about needed improvements to each lesson to ensure that each area of content meets student needs.

3. At the end of each grade level, students will complete a quiz to assess overall understanding of financial literacy content concepts, as well as a quiz to assess their attitude improvement toward implementation of financial principles in the five content areas offered by the 21 MONEY IQ™ online curriculum:

                    1)  financial psychology

                    2) income, careers, business, and entrepreneurship

                    3) accounts, savings, budgeting, and investment

                    4) credit, debt, and loans

                    5) risk management and insurance

The 21 MONEY IQ™ online curriculum is designed as a self-paced, learner-driven online platform. Each learner is given control over their own learning. We believe that each learner will be able to engage with the 21 MONEY IQ™ online curriculum in a personal and meaningful way. We envision the 21 MONEY IQ™ online curriculum also facilitating each learner's ability to further develop skills that improve their language arts and math academic development. Hence, we support access to individualized education that works for each learner.

Yes. The 21 MONEY IQ™ online curriculum follows the expert curriculum content designed by Dr. Jacobs with the National Financial Educators Council (NFEC). By visiting the NFEC educational standards page, you will find details about curriculum development, age and topic breakdown reasoning, and standards for student learning outcomes. 

The NFEC’s Financial Literacy Framework & Standards for learners was developed to improve the quality and enhance the impact of instruction in financial literacy. These standards define what a child should know about personal finance across 5 core areas of this subject matter. These standards lay out the learning goals and educational outcomes for financial education programs. In the 21 MONEY IQ™ online curriculum, these programs are designed to reach children in third grade through eighth grade. 

Drawing upon research-based pedagogical principles, including Core Knowledge, Depth of Knowledge, and Cognitive Development theories, the standards offer a conceptual framework to teach kids about money in a way that aligns with their current developmental levels. You can explore more about the theories supporting curriculum development HERE (at the bottom of the page under RESEARCH). Testimonials of learning and impact will be included HERE soon.

Yes. The National Financial Educators Council (NFEC), which can be accessed HERE, offers financial literacy standards and framework for student learning outcomes. These standards and framework for student learning outcomes* are at the core of what the 21 MONEY IQ™ online curriculum offers.

The NFEC’s Financial Literacy Standards for learners and educators were developed to improve the quality and enhance the impact of financial literacy instruction. These standards define what a person should know about personal finance across the core areas of this subject matter and the best practices for teaching personal finance. The standards cover five sections representing the major topic areas of the NFEC curriculum: 

                    1)  financial psychology

                    2) income, careers, business, and entrepreneurship

                    3) accounts, savings, budgeting, and investment

                    4) credit, debt, and loans

                    5) risk management and insurance

Within each section the standards are separated by grade level. To guide these educational standards and ensure that instructional targets are age-appropriate, the NFEC consulted pedagogical theories including Webb’s Depth of Knowledge Theory, Core Knowledge Theory, and Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development. Taken together, these models offered a conceptual frame for effectively teaching kids about money in a way that meets them at their current developmental level. By following these standards and framework, which separate material based on cognitive abilities, the 21 MONEY IQ™ online curriculum scaffolds lessons appropriately, ensuring that students can complete the lessons successfully at each level.   

The NFEC worked with a team of over a hundred professionals from financial services, traditional education, personal finance, and psychology – the NFEC developed standards for both the people delivering the education and those learning the subject matter. These standards set forth learning goals and educational targets for financial literacy curriculum and instruction. The overall objective of developing such standards is to enhance the quality and impact of financial literacy programming. 

*You can find further information on NFEC's Standards and Framework HERE. 

The value of investing in financial literacy is a transformative step providing the necessary tools for the next generation of leaders to break the cycle of financial hardship. By equipping these students with essential money management skills, we are not only promoting individual responsibility and economic independence, but also fostering a sense of hope and possibility beyond their childhood reality. The 21 MONEY IQ™ online curriculum will provide students with the knowledge to be able to make informed and responsible financial decisions, to understand the value of savings and investment, and to navigate the complexities of credit and debt in their lives. 

Moreover, as these students strive to succeed financially, the positive impact will ripple through their families and communities, ultimately contributing to a stronger, more resilient economy. Supporting the mission of financial literacy for every student is not just an investment in education; it is an investment in the future of our communities and society.

Yes.  Available evidence portrays financial education programs as a very effective tool to increase financial knowledge among children and youth. The measured learning gains are impressive, especially when compared to those delivered by successful educational interventions trying to improve math and language performance in school. Modest positive impact is also identified in terms of savings and shopping behavior. Additionally, promising studies show that personal finance courses are able to increase self-control and patience, which are both intrinsic traits related to healthy financial behavior and overall school-based performance for students.

Source: Frisancho, V. (2019). The impact of Financial Education for Youth. Inter-American Devlopment Bank. 

Yes. A clear and consistent takeaway from the rigorous studies featured in this publication is that well-implemented state financial education mandates led to a clear improvement in financial behaviors. Across rigorous youth financial education empirical research, findings remain relatively consistent: financial education can improve financial knowledge and financial behaviors. Evidence shows that school-based financial-education programs can improve children’s and adolescents’ financial knowledge and attitudes. Studies that assess the intention to practice good behavior and studies based on self-reported behavior also report positive effects. 

Source: Consumer Financial Consumer Bureau (2019). A Review of Youth Financial Education: Effects and Evidence. Consumer Financial Consumer Bureau. 

Yes. The 21 MONEY IQ™ team suggests and supports community members engagement in school activities that support students in their financial literacy journey. Please contact us at info@21moneyiq.com using the subject line: community support for ideas on how to implement community support efforts to strengthen your financial literacy efforts that work for your school.

Yes. The 21 MONEY IQ™ team welcomes community members who want to share their thoughts and experience about their financial success journey. Please share! You can contact us directly at info@21moneyiq.com using the subject line: STORY. We look forward to connecting with you on behalf of our next generation of leaders.

Yes. The 21 MONEY IQ™ team suggests and promotes community members engagement in school activities that support students in their financial literacy journey. You can contact us directly at info@21moneyiq.com. Please visit the PARTNERS & VISITORS page to learn more about ways in which schools can partner with community members to offset the cost of materials for students.