Economics Resources

Teaching the Colorado Academic Standards in social studies is supported through a wide array of free instructional resources. This webpage lists just a few of these resources and will be updated regularly.

If you are an educator in Colorado and have suggestions for a great free resource please email Stephanie Hartman.

The resources provided on this website are intended to provide a quick access list for educators to use in a way that supports their instructional planning. Provided resources should be previewed and used with teacher discretion. Because this page contains resources outside of the CDE website, CDE cannot control changes in outside content and listing these resources does not indicate an endorsement by the Colorado Department of Education. 

Council for Economic Education
The Council for Economic Education (CEE) is the leading organization in the United States that focuses on the economic and financial education of students from kindergarten through high school. They provide free, online educator resources for economic and personal financial literacy though EconEdLink.

Core Concept Cards
From Federal Reserve Education.org - Helps provide a strong foundation of economic and personal finance vocabulary for secondary students through interactive games and activities. Using the accompanying Teacher Resource Guide to explain words and meanings should help students develop an economic way of thinking and lead them to make better economic and financial decisions as they become adults.

Econ Ed Link
Econ Ed Link is a leading source of online economic and personal finance lessons for educators, students and afterschool providers (K-12)

Economics Explained
A blog courtesy of NetCredit that covers a variety of personal financial literacy and economics topics such as saving, allowances, and interest rates.

Economic Literacy Colorado
Economic Literacy Colorado (formerly Colorado Council for Economic Education) provides year-round university-accredited professional development classes, materials, in-service training, and district-wide training for K-12 Colorado teachers of economics or personal financial literacy. All classes and programs, including the popular Stock Market Experience simulation, are available to public, private and parochial school teachers of all experience levels at no or low cost.  

The Economics Library
The Council for Economic Education (CEE) has compiled a list of the 51 key economics concepts common to all U.S. State requirements for high school classes in economics. The readings and podcasts arranged here supplement these recommended CEE topics. These free resources are appropriate for teachers of high school and AP economics, social studies, and history classes

The Economic Lowdown Podcast Series
The Economic Lowdown is a podcast series produced by the Economic Education department of the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank for high school students. The series covers topics in economics, banking, and monetary policy. In the end, they will see how economic principles affect the choices they make in their everyday lives.

The Economic Lowdown Video Companion Series
The Economic Lowdown is a podcast series also includes companion videos. These brief videos use clear, simple language and graphic elements so that students can better visualize the economic concepts being presented. In the end, they will see how economic principles affect the choices they make in their everyday lives.

EverFi
EverFi™ Financial Literacy uses the latest in online technologies – video, animations, 3D gaming, avatars, and social networking – to bring complex financial concepts to life for today’s digital generation. The platform for 9-12 grade students is fully assessed, meets all Colorado Financial Literacy Standards for high school, and contains 10 modules covering a range of topics including credit scores, budgeting, insurance, credit cards and more. EverFi has teamed with major corporations and foundations to provide this cutting-edge course at no cost to all Colorado high schools. 

Federal Reserve Education
Find publications, videos, games and lesson plans about the Federal Reserve, economics, and financial literacy.

Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City
The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City’s mission is to provide economic resources and programs that are easy to understand and implement for educators and students. Find free economic and personal finance resources and professional development opportunities for Colorado educators.

Financial Fables
From the Kansas city Federal Reserve Bank - Online stories that combine reading, economics and personal finance into life lessons about smart money management for grades 3- 5.

Fifty Nifty Econ Cards
From Federal Reserve Education.org - Designed for elementary and middle school students to assist them in developing a knowledge base of economic and personal finance words. Using the accompanying Teacher Resource Guide (English|Spanish) to introduce the word cards and meanings to students should help provide a foundation in economic thinking. The resource guide activities and games will help teachers integrate economic vocabulary into the school day through language, math, social studies and art.

Junior Achievement (JA)
K-12 programs focus on financial literacy, entrepreneurship and workforce development. These programs, delivered by volunteers, complement what is being taught in the classroom every day and meet the new Colorado Academic Standards. Through JA, educators are able to access a network of 5,000 knowledgeable adult role-models who volunteer to bring JA’s hands-on programs to life and bridge the gap between what students learn in the classroom and the real world. JA programs are free to schools.

Khan Academy
Features a variety of short video presentations on a wide-range of economic topics. The videos are suitable for high school students of economics or for teachers wishing to hone their own understanding.

Stock Market Experience
The Stock Market Experience is a free program for students of all ages and ability levels. Participants have many real-life stock market trading features including: real-time trading with streaming portfolio updates, $10 broker’s fee per transaction, intuitive onsite research tools, and freedom to trade any investment type: stocks, bonds, futures, and mutual funds. The Stock Market Experience is a program of the Economic Literacy Colorado.