FitKit™ Personal Finance Program Offerings

Course Curriculum​	Audience​	Course Length
FitKit™ Middle School	students in grades 5-8	6-8 hours (45-60 minutes per concept)
​FitKit™60 High School	high school students	​60 hours + 30 hours of extension activities
FitKit™ University	college or university students	60 hours + 30 hours of extension activities
FitKit™ Express*	​underserved populations in local communities	​6-8 hours (60 minutes per concept)

* FitKit™ Express is an off-shoot of the FitKit™60 High School curriculum.  It is tailored to fit the specific needs of men and women either in risk of or currently living in poverty.
   Financial concepts are addressed primarily through peer-to-peer video content that reflects the challenges this community experiences.  The Express program is meant to be offered
   in community-based organizations, such as libraries and community centers.  It can also be offered to the parents of students who take the course in school.
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Financial concepts covered in each course:

1. income and careers
2. pay, benefits and deductions

3.  taxes
4.​  budgeting​

5.  banks and banking
6.  savings and investments​

7.  credit
8.  insurance

​Design Elements:

• created by actual classroom teachers, with a sound pedagogic method
• provides teachers without a finance background an easy-to-implement curriculum, teaching cues, background information, and supporting materials
• focuses solely on personal finance skills rather than more general financial literacy skills
• tailored to the real-life needs of students (such as funding college or opening their first bank account) and walking them through the decision-making process
• includes peer-to-peer learning videos, games, group activities, as well as more traditional lesson plans
• pre- and post-assessments can be administered to gauge teaching effectiveness and outcomes
• allows for feedback from both teachers and students, which is used to improve the curriculum
• incorporates hands-on assignments to take the discussions home to parents

​​​All programs are offered in print or online.  The printed version provides teacher guides and student books, while the online version features peer-to-peer videos, PowerPoint presentations, and interactive features that engage the learner.  The courses can be taught by educators or by volunteers.  DoughMain can train both educators and volunteers to teach the material, or, in the case of community education, we can provide the instructors.  DoughMain also provides continued support to all active users of its curriculum.

Benefits 0f Personal Finance Education

• Students who participate in ​FitKit™ programs show an average increase of 40% in test scores ( 52% hs juniors)
• FitKit™ curriculum presents as gender neutral with young women consistently performing as well as young men 
• Students who participate in FitKit™ courses who demonstrate as needing to learn the most, do
• Minority populations perform as well as non-minority students
• Positive attitudes related to learning about personal finance increase from 19% to approximately 91% by course completion

• Pre-college personal finance instruction when combined with good curriculum can improve the financial knowledge and financial literacy of students of different ages
• Students in states with mandatory financial literacy requirements are more likely to save, have higher credit scores lower delinquencey rates and higher net worth in adulthood
• Financial education has an important positive influence in changing long-term financial behavior
• Good personal finance knoweledge and skills support stable futures

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All FitKit™ curricula meet or exceed the following standards:

• National Common Core
• Standards for 21st-Century Life and Career Skills
• National Standards for Personal Financial Education developed by the Council for Economic Education and the Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy

All FitKit™ personal finance programs have been developed with DoughMain Financial Literacy Foundation's IDEA Mindset (Inclusion, Diversity, Equality and Availability) for opportunity populations.  DoughMain focuses on building the cornerstone knowledge and skills needed for financial success for all and is working to continually evolve the curriculum to reflect and meet the challenges of the communities we serve.

What Teachers are Saying

The 2008 financial crisis displayed the need for personal finance courses, and this curriculum certainly fills that need.”

The hands-on and real life connections which students make are incredible.”

“The videos add an amazing element to the already engaging curriculum, which students love.”

I feel confident that the next generation of Americans will be better prepared, if they have the opportunity to complete this course.”

This modern approach to the contemporary concept of personal finance fits right in with 21st Century teens.”