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Lessons and Activities

The Atlanta Fed and other Federal Reserve Banks have award-winning, free lessons to help middle and high school educators teach about personal finance, money and banking, macro- and microeconomics, and international economics.

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Aug 24, 2021

Down on the Farm: Marginal Productivity and Profit Maximization in a Factor Market

Students participate in an interactive simulation to determine the number of workers a farm should hire to maximize profits in a perfectly competitive labor market.

Aug 24, 2021

What Is the Board of Governors?

Teaching the structure and functions of the Federal Reserve? This lesson helps your students understand the role of the Fed's Board of Governors through video, movement, and discussion.

Aug 24, 2021

Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta's Boardroom Discussion and Activity

How do the Fed's interest rate changes affect our daily lives? And where does the Fed get the information that informs its interest rate decisions? The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta's new boardroom video answers these questions, with active-learning exercises accompanying the video.

Aug 24, 2021

Federal Reserve Basics–Human Bingo

Students will seek peers who know the answers to complete a bingo card on basic facts of the Federal Reserve.

Aug 24, 2021

Understanding Price Elasticity: It's No Stretch!

Looking for an engaging way to introduce elasticity to your students? This lesson uses rubber bands and other familiar products to get your students excited about the topic.

Aug 24, 2021

Allocation Strategies, Rational Decision Making, and Social Economic Goals

Combine rational decision-making models, allocation strategies, and social economic goals to teach multiple content standards in one lesson.

Aug 24, 2021

Career Opportunities at the Federal Reserve

The Federal Reserve has a wide variety of careers available in various fields, and this lesson will allow students to consider various career opportunities that may be available to them in the future.

Aug 24, 2021

Who Works for Minimum Wage?

Do your students have questions about the debate over the minimum wage? Give them insight into the economics of price floors by using this interactive lesson.

Aug 24, 2021

From Raw Materials to Riches: Mercantilism and the British North American Colonies

In this lesson, students will interpret primary sources and participate in a simulation activity to learn about the mercantilist system used in British North America.

Aug 24, 2021

Protection for Peanuts: Supply, Demand, and Agricultural Support Policies

This lesson on the economics of the peanut industry—using interactive activities, primary source analysis, and graphing—is a great tool for economics, history, and government teachers.

Aug 24, 2021

Your Connection to the Economy and the Federal Reserve

Students will explore the interdependent relationship between households and the Federal Reserve using Richmond's infographic.

Aug 24, 2021

Factors Influencing Gross Domestic Product

In this activity, students will explore how a country’s factors of production influence a country's level of gross domestic product.

Aug 24, 2021

Building Block Barter Lesson for Third to Fifth Graders

Do your elementary students like to build with plastic blocks? Get them excited with this hands-on lesson about bartering and the characteristics of money.

Aug 24, 2021

You Can Quote Me On That: History of the National Debt

What US president said, "Blessed are the young, for they shall inherit the national debt"? In this exercise, students will deliberate on historical figures' thinking about our country's debt and construct a timeline of its history.

Aug 24, 2021

Jekyll Island and the Creation of the Fed

In this lesson, students will learn about the early history of the Federal Reserve. They will learn about Jekyll Island's past and about the Panic of 1907, the Aldrich-Vreeland Act, the origins and outcomes of the secret Jekyll Island meeting, and the passage of the Federal Reserve Act.

Aug 24, 2021

Real versus Nominal Values: Let’s Go to the Movies!

Teach your economics students about the difference between real and nominal values with this activity that uses movies as a learning tool. Students will learn how to adjust a value like a ticket price for inflation, giving the real value.

Aug 24, 2021

Economic Theme Bingo

Use this bingo to help students learn about their classmates as they move around the room and identify behaviors associated with gains from trades, incentives, interdependency, and scarcity.

Aug 24, 2021

Introduction to International Trade

Which countries are the most important trading partners with the United States? Get your students thinking about their own states' exports with this activity.

Aug 24, 2021

A Trip around the World through Exports

Are you teaching a class on globalization, world trade, exports, and comparative advantage? This activity will complement your curricula and help students identify top world export leaders.