Category: Financial Literacy Tools

Contests, Financial Literacy Tools, Helpful Information, Uncategorized

Help families save for college and win $529 for your school

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529logoIf you are an elementary teacher or principal, you play a vital role in helping  young children grow – and now you can help their families grow their college savings. This spring, the State Treasurer’s Office is offering  a new 529 college savings tutorial, College Savings Iowa InFocus. This short, interactive learning experience allows parents, grandparents and others to explore the numerous benefits of using a 529 plan to start saving for a loved one’s future.

Each person who completes the 10-minute tutorial will be registered to win a $1,000 College Savings Iowa account for a loved one. For helping spread the word, two participating elementary schools across Iowa will be selected to win $529 for their school. In order to enter the school giveaway, simply request that your families include your school name and city upon their registration for the tutorial.*

This opportunity will be open to elementary schools across the state starting on April 1, during Financial Literacy Month, and wrapping on May 31, in celebration of 529 Day.

For more information about the program and to request materials, please sign up at IowaTreasurer.gov no later than Tuesday, March 15. Please email Amanda Shetler (Amanda.Shetler@iowa.gov) with any questions.**

For more information about College Savings Iowa, visit CollegeSavingsIowa.com.

*At least five parents/guardians of a school must properly register for and complete the tutorial in order for that school to be considered eligible for the random drawing.

**School information will not be shared with third party organizations.

For more information about the College Savings Iowa 529 Plan, call 888-672-9116 or visit collegesavingsiowa.com to obtain a Program Description. Investment objectives, risks, charges, expenses, and other important information are included in the Program Description; read and consider it carefully before investing.

Financial Literacy Tools

Department of Revenue releases 2015 Iowa Income Tax Practice Packet for Students

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Taxes 1The Iowa Department of Revenue is pleased to work with Jump$tart Iowa to promote financial literacy education.  That education should include basic knowledge about how to complete a tax return.  To assist with the development of that knowledge, the Department has created a student packet with examples, exercises, and instructions for teachers to expose students to the basics of completing an Iowa 1040 Individual Income tax return.  The Department encourages the usage of this packet and welcomes any questions you may have about the information presented.  Please contact idr@iowa.gov.

Download: 2015 Student Iowa Income Tax Practice Packet

Please take time to fill in the Tax Packet Evaluation to help us know where we can improve on this tool.

Financial Literacy Tools, Helpful Information

Enter Your School in Project Financial Literacy for the Chance to Win a $1,000 Scholarship to Help Students

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project_fl-logoEnter your school into Project Financial Literacy by March 15 – and you’ll also be eligible for the chance to win one of ten $1,000 scholarships to help your school and students. Scholarships are sponsored by the Iowa Bankers Association and are available to help Iowa schools improve their financial literacy programs or provide scholarships to students.

Providing students with basic financial literacy skills helps to equip them for future success. Project Financial Literacy is designed to promote financial literacy education by providing high schools with an assessment tool, developed by Iowa-based Ednalysis, to help evaluate their financial literacy curriculum. The assessment tool is provided to schools free of charge thanks to the support of local sponsors, including Iowa banks. Upon taking the assessment, teachers and administrators who wish to address areas of improvement identified in the assessment may also utilize staff and resources available from TS Institute.

In addition, schools signed up for the project by March 15 will be eligible for random, regional drawings for one of ten $1,000 scholarships sponsored by the Iowa Bankers Association to improve financial literacy programs or help students. Scholarship award recipients will be announced in early April 2015.

Sign up your school today at www.projectfl.org.

Financial Literacy Tools, Helpful Information

Money Smart Kid Essay Contest Offers Students a Chance to Win $1,000

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MSWlogoStudents in grades seven through eleven can now enter the tenth annual Money Smart Kid essay contest and compete for the chance to win $1,000 to help boost their college savings. The statewide essay contest is sponsored by the Iowa Bankers Association.

Eligible students can enter the contest by writing an essay of 300 words or fewer, answering questions based on this scenario: “Your family faces a medical emergency. Due to this situation, your parent/guardian cannot work temporarily. Your family does not have much savings and will need to find ways to adjust spending.” Given this scenario, students must answer the questions: “How could your family adjust spending? What actions might you take to assist your family situation? How can your family prepare in the future for unexpected emergencies that have major financial impact?”

Essays are due by March 25. The student with the winning essay will be selected as Iowa’s Money Smart Kid for 2016 and receive $1,000 toward college savings funded by the Iowa Bankers Association.

The Money Smart Kid serves as an ambassador during Money Smart Week Iowa, which will be April 23-30 in several communities across the state.

Click here for more information.

Financial Literacy Tools, Helpful Information

Hands on Banking Resources for Iowa Teachers

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HandsOnBankinglogoAre you an Iowa teacher looking for easy-to-use financial literacy curriculum that can be used with any age group, aligns with Iowa’s core standards, includes helpful instructor guides, and is FREE? Then you’ll want to check out the Hands on Banking program provided free of charge by Wells Fargo. It includes all of these things – and more!

Topics for every age group
The Hands on Banking program offers all the basic money tools, skills, and information you need to provide your students with valuable financial education lessons. Plus, different lessons are available for kids and teens. Just pick your target age group and get started!

Helpful instructor guides
The program also includes free, downloadable Instructor Guides that provide everything you’ll need to guide your students through real-life scenarios, group discussions, and valuable activities.

Alignment to educational standards
The lessons for school-aged children are aligned with national and state educational standards for economics, financial literacy, mathematics, and English language arts, making it easy to integrate the Hands on Banking program into the classroom.

Click here to learn more, and click here to contact Wells Fargo’s Eric Idehen to participate in the program.

Quick links to additional resources

Financial Literacy Tools, Iowa Jump$tart Information

Visit 140 Colleges in One Day

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collegeflagscroppedThe Golden Circle College Fair is traditionally the largest in Iowa, and is sponsored by Iowa College Access Network and supported by Iowa Student Loan, both members of the Iowa Jump$tart Coalition. Last year, 140 colleges and universities exhibited to more than 2,000 students and family members. Take advantage of this chance to speak one-on-one with school representatives from across the country, and attend breakout sessions on planning for college.

The 25th Annual Golden Circle College Fair
Golden Circle College Fair
Iowa Events Center – Hy-Vee Hall
Des Moines
Sunday, Sept. 27, 2015
12:30 p.m. – 3 p.m.

Visit Golden Circle College Fair to learn more.

Financial Literacy Tools, Helpful Information, Iowa Jump$tart Information

Jump Into Financial Literacy at Iowa Jump$tart’s Personal Financial Literacy Conference!

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Jump Into Financia lLiteracyDon’t miss your opportunity to attend Iowa Jump$tart’s Annual Conference for Personal Financial Literacy July 16 at the FFA Enrichment Center in the Ankeny DMACC campus. This conference is designed especially for educators, and provides a wealth of programs and materials to help teach financial literacy. Keynote sessions will include Mike Finley (aka the Crazy Man in the Pink Wig), Lincoln Hughes of EverFi and Robert Kinzer of the FDIC. There will also be a number of breakout sessions featuring a variety of free tools and resources you can use. In addition, K-12 educators have a chance to win a sponsorship to the national Jump$tart Conference in November.

Click here to learn more and to register.

Financial Literacy Tools, Helpful Information, Upcoming Events

Money Smart Week® Returns April 18-25, 2015

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MSW2015

 

Saving for college? Preparing for retirement? Repairing your credit? Just wish you were better at managing your money? Sign up today for one of many financial education programs during Money Smart Week® April 18-25, coordinated by The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago and hundreds of local partner organizations in your community.

Money Smart Week events are open to the public at businesses, financial institutions, schools, libraries, nonprofits and government agencies on topics including kids and money, credit building, managing student debt and retirement. Event information is available here.

Financial Literacy Tools

Department of Revenue releases 2014 Iowa Income Tax Practice Packet for Students

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Paying Income Taxes on chalk boardThe Iowa Department of Revenue is pleased to work with Jump$tart Iowa to promote financial literacy education.  That education should include basic knowledge about how to complete a tax return.  To assist with the development of that knowledge, the Department has created a student packet with examples, exercises, and instructions for teachers to expose students to the basics of completing an Iowa 1040 Individual Income tax return.  The Department encourages the usage of this packet and welcomes any questions you may have about the information presented.  Please contact idr@iowa.gov.

Download:

2014 Student Iowa Income Tax Practice Packet

Please take time to fill in the Tax Packet Evaluation to help us know where we can improve on this tool.

Financial Literacy Tools, Helpful Information

Registration for EconChallenge Now Open

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nec-imageTeachers can now register their students in the National Economics Challenge, a national competition to help high school students build and test their knowledge of economics. The challenge is open to all high schools, and teachers can create as many student teams as they like. The Council for Economic Education will pay all registration and participation fees.

Register now to have your students participate in the online competition, which will take place March 1-April 3, 2015. The national semifinal competition will take place April 14. The top four teams from the semifinals will compete in the national competition taking place May 16-18 in New York.

Click here for more information.