Life Skills

Critical Thinking & Research

Critical Thinking Teaching Resources  (T)
A large collection of resources for teaching and learning critical thinking skills that covers a range of topics including logical fallacies, taxonomy of thinking, cognitive biases, and more.

Practical Skills for Soon-to-be College Students  (O)
A collection of lesson plans from the University of Connecticut for new and soon-to-be college students. Included are lessons on Critical Thinking, Creative Thinking, Community Building, Financial Literacy, Health and Wellness, Self Awareness, Study Skills, Time Management, and more.

Fact Check  (O,T)
"We're overwhelmed with messages every day, many of them attempts to persuade us to do or buy something.Our aim is to help students learn to be smart consumers of these messages, to see through the deceptions that they encounter daily, to dig for facts using the Internet and other resources, and to set aside prejudice and weigh evidence logically... The materials on this site, then, are tools to teach them to see through spin. Under the heading Tools of the Trade we've outlined a five-step framework for analyzing information and avoiding deception. That process is the essence of what we do at FactCheck.org, where we have been de-bunking false and misleading claims in politics since 2003." Brought to you by the the Annenberg Public Policy Center supported by a grant from the Flora Family Foundation.

Step-by-Step Guide & Research Rescue: Basic Research Strategy  (O)
A comprehensive guide from Brigham Young University for students to learn research skills. It covers finding resources on your topic, evaluating credibility, accessing sources, and more. The guide is geared toward college students, but contains practical information that will be useful to most older students navigating resources on the Internet or otherwise. Accessed via Internet Archive Wayback Machine.

Emotional Intelligence and Social Skills

Social and Emotional Learning Resources  (Y, M, O, T)
SELspace is an educational website devoted to teaching and developing social and emotional skills in students of all ages. You can find books, presentations, videos, activities, and more for each of the following topics: Building Community, Self & Social Awareness, Mindfulness, Responsible Decision Making, Effective Communication, Healthy Relationships, Mindsets, and Kind Action.

The Positive Psychology Blog  (Y, M, O, T)
Positive Psychology is an online database of resources for mental health professionals, teachers, and anyone interested in teaching or learning emotional intelligence and social skills. Its blog contains a vast number of articles, games, activity ideas, and other resources for stress management, interpersonal relationships, conflict resolution, communication, and more; and you can find resources applicable to all ages.

Personal Finance & Taxes

Understanding Taxes: Lessons and Activities  (O, T)
The IRS has two microsites geared toward teaching and learning taxes for students. The Teacher site contains tons and tons of lesson plans for teaching tax codes, why we pay taxes, and how to pay them. The Student site has self-guided lessons, activities, tutorials, simulators, quizzes, and more. These sites are a must-see for students who may be getting their first jobs. "Understanding Taxes is to be considered an instructional site for teaching purposes only. The information is based on 2014 tax law."

Federal Reserve Free Resources for Personal Finance and Economics  (YMOT)
Econ Lowdown is a FREE platform with online courses and videos for K-12 students that teaches the fundamentals of personal finance and economics. To access, create an Instructor account and choose "home school" or "other organization." Browse and filter the Resource Gallery to build a classroom and enroll students in the lessons you select. You can track their progress and scores on activity assessments.

Money Prodigy  (Y,M,O)
A huge list of FREE personal finance homeschool curriculum and lessons for kids. You can find resources on just about everything - from financial literacy and building credit, to entrepreneurship and career guidance.

MoneySKILL®  (O)
MoneySKILL®, a personal finance course sponsored by the members of the American Financial Services Association, is a highly interactive, reality-based Internet curriculum. "Its purpose is to educate students to make informed financial decisions. The course consists of 34 "How To" modules on income, money management, spending and credit, and saving and investing. The modules are designed to be approximately 40 minutes in length." The course is free and has a built-in grading program so the educator can view the student's progress. Registration is required. Gr 9-12

Articles, Money Management Unleash Your Savings Plan  (O)
Power Over Life has useful online Life Skills training for all ages, a perfect resource for home schooled students. This Article walks the readers through how to create a savings plan so that they can save money for their future. It's comprehensive and includes a saving money tips list as a bonus! Accessed via Internet Archive Wayback Machine.

Practical Money Skills  (Y,M,O,T)
Practical Money Skills is a comprehensive website which includes not only resources for budgeting and consumer math, but lesson plans for teachers divided by topic and age group. Look under For Educator for lessons for preschool through college. You must register (free) to use the lessons. From VISA

Wise Bread  (O,T)
Wise Bread is a personal finance and frugal living blog that contains a large selection of how-to's and comprehensive guides on credit cards, insurance, investing, retirement, and more.

The Dollar Stretcher  (T)
From ways to save money homeschooling to how to find the best rate on a credit card, Dollar Stretcher covers it all. This site has been around for many years and covers so many topics in such depth that it would take days to go through it all. If your budget is tight or if you just want to save more, you will find lots of helpful resources on the Dollar Stretcher. Don't miss their message boards and e-zine if you want to keep up with the latest updates to the site.

Bankrate  (T)
"Bankrate guides savers and spenders through the next steps of their financial journey" by providing tons of free loan and affordability calculators, budgeting tools, product comparisons, how-to guides, courses, quizzes, and more. Some resources require a free account to access.

Money Math: Lessons for Life  (T,O)
Money Math is a four-lesson curriculum supplement for middle school math classes, teaching grade 7-9 math concepts using real-life examples from personal finance. The 86-page book is a teacher's guide with lesson plans, reproducible activity pages, and teaching tips. A teacher needs only one copy of Money Math to teach several classes of students.

Living on a Dime  (T)
No matter what your income level, this site will challenge you to think about how your money is spent. Founded by two women who each paid off an extraordinary amount of debt on income that is close to the poverty level. Great for teaching kids about budgeting!

Money Basics (O)
In this free tutorial, learn skills like creating a budget, managing a checking account, and planning for retirement.

Driving & Automobiles

Teen Driver Resources  (O)
A BIG list of resources from Teens in the Driver's Seat - includes safety tips and studies, practical tips for handling roadside breakdowns and emergencies, driver education curriculum, licensing and insurance information, and more.

Buying a Car: Teacher Resources  (O)
A large collection of resources about buying and owning a car - covers everything from how to research vehicles and navigating loans, to choosing insurance and performing maintenance. From lesson planet. This site comes with a ten day free trial.

Miscellaneous

NCDA Career Guidance Resources  (O)
The National Career Development Association has a large collection of resources to help answer the question, "What do I want to do with my life?" Inside you can find personality, interests, and skills assessments; career exploration tools; industry guides; education guides; resume writing and interviewing tips; and more.

Teacher Resources: Insurance Curriculum for Middle & High School Teachers  (M,T)
To increase the knowledge of insurance among the youth, The Zebra has created the following presentations and activities for use in your classroom. This lesson plan introduces students to a broad overview of insurance. At the end of the lesson, students will be familiar with basic insurance terms and concepts. This will provide supplemental information for a Social Studies unit on Personal Finance. The lesson can be covered in two 50-minute class periods.

Darkness to Light  (T)
Darkness to Light is a non-profit committed to empowering adults to prevent child sexual abuse. Their work is guided by the vision of a world free from child sexual abuse, where children can grow up happy, healthy and safe. Prevention is possible, and we believe that it is an adult responsibility to protect children.

Life Skills Courses  (Y, M, O, T)
Everfi is a life skills education company dedicated to bridging the gap between academic learning and life skills. Its K-12 video courses are free and cover the topics of Financial Education, Career Readiness, Health and Wellness, Social Emotional Learning, Cultural Literacy, Digital Literacy and Wellness, STEM Literacy, Early Academic Readiness, and Sustainability Education.

Active/Reflective Listening Skills Resources  (M, O, T)
A collection of worksheets, lesson plans, presentations, and activities from the Utah Education Network for teaching and learning essential listening skills. The lessons will help students "identify types of communication styles, explain active/effective listening skills, and demonstrate the ability to use active listening skills."

Get Organized Now  (T)
This site will help you to analyze your space and get it organized, whether your space is a desk or a room or an entire house. Get Organized Now has a newsletter (archives can be viewed on the site), articles, and a forum where you can connect with others.

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