Elementary: (K-5)

JA’s elementary school programs are the foundation of its K-12 curricula. Six sequential themes, each with five hands-on activities, as well as an after-school and capstone experience, work to change students’ lives by helping them understand business and economics.

Kindergarten

Ourselves® uses compelling stories read aloud by the volunteer, along with hands-on activities, to demonstrate helping, working, earning, and saving. Five required, volunteer-led activities.

• Concepts – Barter, Benefit, Buying, Choices, Consumer, Costs, Earning, Entrepreneurs, Giving, Goods, Incentives, Income, Money, Resources, Rewards, Saving, Scarcity, Selling, Spending, Voluntary exchange, Wants, Work
• Skills – Abstract thinking, Coin recognition, Coin valuation, Decision-making, Drawing, Following directions, Interpreting information, Listening responsively, Matching, Responsibility, Sequencing, Teamwork

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First Grade

Our Families® emphasizes the roles people play in the local economy and engages students with activities about needs, wants, jobs, tools and skills, and interdependence. Five required, volunteer-led activities.

• Concepts – Business, Choices, Consumers, Earning, Economic incentives, Economic institutions, Employment, Family, Human resources, Incentives, Income, Interdependence, Jobs, Money, Needs, Resources, Scarcity, Skills, Spending, Tools, Voluntary exchange, Wants, Work
• Skills – Analyzing information, Decision-making, Differentiating, Drawing, Following directions, Interpreting symbols, Listening responsively, Making observations, Map reading, Matching, Recognizing symbols, Sequencing, Teamwork

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Second Grade

Our Community® explores the interdependent roles of workers in a community, the work they perform, and how communities work. Five required, volunteer-led activities.

• Concepts – Ballot, Banking, Benefits, Business, Choices, Circular flow of money, Community, Defect, Division of labor, Economic institutions, Goods, Government, Incentives, Interdependence, Jobs, Money, Needs, Productivity, Quality, Resources, Services, Skills, Specialization of labor, Taxes, Trade-offs, Vote, Wants
• Skills – Comparing, Critical thinking, Constructing data, Decision-making, Developing ideas, Displaying data, Formulating questions, Identifying choices, Interpreting data, Listening responsively, Making observations, Matching, Predicting based on data, Problem-solving, Role-playing, Teamwork

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Third Grade

Our City® studies careers, the skills people need to work in specific careers, and how businesses contribute to a city. Five required, volunteer-led activities.

• Concepts – Banking, Business, Careers, City, City planner, Communication, Consumer, Decision, Economic development, Economic institutions, Entrepreneur, Incentives, Income, Interdependence, Jobs, Money, Producer, Quality, Resources, Skills, Specialization, Zones
• Skills – Applying information, Applying thinking skills, Compiling data, Conducting research, Constructing data, Creating readable documents, Decision-making, Developing ideas, Drawing, Filling out forms, Following directions, Identifying zones, Interpreting data, Interpreting directions, Listening critically, Mapping information, Map reading, Making observations, Math computations, News writing, Reading data, Responding to written and oral presentations, Role-playing, Teamwork, Using scale

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Fourth Grade

Our Region® introduces the relationship between the natural, human, and capital resources found in different regions and explores regional businesses that produce goods and services for consumers. Five required, volunteer-led activities.

• Concepts – Advantage, Business, Choices, Compass rose, Decision, Disadvantage, Economy, Exchange, Expenses, Financial report, Goods, Government, Incentives, Income, Interdependence, Investment, Loss, Opportunity cost, Products, Profit, Region, Resources, Risk, Scarcity, Services, Specialization, Taxes
• Skills – Applying thinking skills, Building consensus, Comparing, Compiling data, Conducting research, Decision-making, Demonstrating economic networks, Describing an economy within a region and future economic consequences, Differentiating, Following directions, Giving reports, Identifying goods and services, Identifying and organizing resources, Identifying purpose of taxes, Interpreting data, Math computations, Predicting results, Problem-solving, Reading, Recognizing major geographical features, Teamwork, Understanding symbols

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Fifth Grade

Our Nation® examines how businesses operate in the United States. Students role-play business ownership, interview for jobs, and learn different methods of production while exploring various economic issues that affect business. Five required, volunteer-led activities.

• Concepts – Advantages, Advertising, Business plan, Careers, Competition, Corporations, Division of labor, Employees, Entrepreneur, Goods, Jobs, Manager, Markets, Marketing, Partnerships, Price, Products, Production, Productivity, Profit, Quality, Resources, Salary, Services, Sole proprietorship, Specialization, Stock, Stockholder
• Skills – Assembling products, Brainstorming, Building self-esteem, Conceptualizing and designing advertisements, Critical thinking, Decision-making, Drawing conclusions, Following directions, Formulating a plan, Giving reports, Interviewing, Listening, Making observations, Role-playing, Teamwork

All JA programs are designed to support the skills and competencies identified by the Partnership for 21st Century Skills. These programs also augment school-based, work-based, and connecting activities for communities with school-to-work initiatives.

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Middle (6-8)

Careers with a Purpose - Maxims, or rules of conduct, are used in JA Careers with a Purpose to frame career and life decision-making. What should I do when I graduate from high school? What choices are out there? How do my skills, interests, and values match with available careers?

Through JA Careers with a Purpose, students learn to use ethical decision-making skills to make career and life decisions. They discover that their career can have a noble purpose by reviewing their values and life maxims.

• Concepts–Career, Career choices, Job, Life roles, Maxim, Noble purpose, World of work
• Skills–Analyzing information, Building self-confidence, Categorizing data, Oral and written communication, Public speaking, Working in groups

JA Economics for Success explores personal finance and students’ education and career options based on their skills, interests, and values. JA Economics for Success is a series of six activities recommended for students in grades six, seven, and eight.

• Concepts – Credit, Debt, Gross income, Interest, Insurance, Needs and wants, Net income, Opportunity cost, Risk, Self-knowledge, World of work.
• Skills – Critical thinking, Decision-making, Following directions, Interpreting data, Math calculations, Oral and written communication, Problem-solving, Role-playing, Self-assessment, Working in groups.

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High School (9-12)

"What do I need to know to find, get, and keep a job"? The answer? JA Success Skills. Students participate in challenging exercises to help them develop personal strategies to achieve lifelong learning pursuits and career opportunities. Team-building exercises test their problem-solving and critical-thinking skills, as well as their ability to communicate, negotiate, and lead. Through engaging activities, they appreciate the importance of personal appearance, professional demeanor, punctuality, and written and oral communication.

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After-school Programs

Recognizing the need to further educate our youth outside the classroom environment, JA of Lake and Sumter Counties is working to further develop its after-school program offering.  Currently JA provides partnership opportunities with other local organizations to provide the economic education programs. 

JA Dollars and $ense™ teaches students about earning, spending, sharing, and saving money, and businesses they can start or jobs they can perform to earn money. Six required, after-school, volunteer-led activities.

• Concepts – Advertising, Banking, Business, Business planning, Consumer, Deceptive, Deposit, Earn, Employee, Entrepreneur, Estimate, Expense, Good, Income, Interest, Job skill, Market research, Mentor, Money, Money management, Profit, Role model, Save, Self-employed, Service, Share, Spend, Start-up cost, Withdrawal, Work ethic
• Skills – Active listening, Analysis, Applying information, Basic Math, Brainstorming, Chart data, Compare and contrast, Completing forms, Computation, Critical thinking, Deductive reasoning, Decision-making, Drawing, Evaluating data, Follow written and verbal instructions, Group work, Matching and classifying, Mind-mapping, Problem-solving, Recording deposits and withdrawals, Role-playing, Self-assessment, Taking turns, Teamwork, Vocabulary building

JA It's my Business encompasses entrepreneurship curriculum for students in grades six, seven, and eight. The program emphasizes entrepreneurship while providing a strong focus on social studies, reading, and writing skills. Students are encouraged to use critical thinking to learn entrepreneurial skills that support positive attitudes as they explore and enhance their career aspirations. Six required, volunteer-led sessions.

• Concepts – Advertising, Apprentice, Auction, Auctioneer, Be creative and innovative, Believe in yourself, Bid, Business, Business plan, Civic responsibility, Customer, Entrepreneur, Entrepreneur profile, Fill a need, Know your customer and product, Market, Marketing, Profit, Self-taught, Social entrepreneur.
• Skills – Active listening, Analyzing information, Brainstorming, Creative thinking, Critical thinking, Decision-making, Deductive reasoning, Estimating, Following directions, Group work, Interpreting information, Measuring, Money management, Oral and written communication, Problem-solving, Self-assessment.

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