Investing Unit

Students will be able to

• Define investing and distinguish it from saving and trading
• Identify reasons for investing, including outpacing inflation
• Explain what the stock market is and why companies and investors choose to participate in the stock market 
• Summarize long-term trends in the stock market
• Experience why it can be difficult to predict trends in the stock market 

Students will be able to:

• Explain what stocks are and how they can make money from investing in them 
• Identify ways to minimize risk when investing in stocks 
• Read a stock quote and evaluate a stock’s performance over time 
• Understand what a stock split is and how it impacts investors who own that stock

Students will be able to:

• Explain what a bond is and the pros and cons of investing in bonds
• Understand the various factors that can influence bond prices such as interest rates
• Identify the differences between an individual bond and a bond fund
• Read a bond fund fact sheet

Students will be able to:

• Explain what risk is and its role in investing
• Analyze effective strategies to manage investment risk such as investing early, diversification, and dollar cost averaging 
• Calculate the impact of using dollar cost averaging in hypothetical scenarios and by using the real historical performance of an index fund

Students will be able to:

• Identify the differences between mutual funds, index funds, exchange-traded funds, and target date funds
• Explain the advantages and disadvantages of investing in mutual funds, index funds, exchange-traded funds, and target date funds

Students will be able to:

• Identify strategies recommended for a beginner investor and explain why these strategies may be beneficial 
• Explore their own risk tolerance through a worksheet
• Experience making a variety of investment decisions through an interactive simulation  
• Understand what a brokerage account is and how to open one

Students will be able to:

• Understand what a 401(k) plan is and its advantages
• Explain the options available to them if an employer does not offer a 401(k) plan
• Conduct research to compare different types of retirement accounts, including Roth IRAs, traditional IRAs, 401(k)s, and pensions

Students will be able to:

• Define investing and distinguish it from saving and trading
• Identify reasons for investing, including outpacing inflation
• Analyze how compounding builds wealth over time
• Experience making a variety of investment decisions through an interactive simulation

Students will be able to:

• Explain what the stock market is and why companies and investors choose to participate in the stock market 
• Summarize long-term trends in the stock market
• Experience why it can be difficult to predict trends in the stock market

Students will be able to:

• Explain what stocks are and how they can make money from investing in them 
• Identify ways to minimize risk when investing in stocks 
• Read a stock quote and evaluate a stock’s performance over time 
• Understand what a stock split is and how it impacts investors who own that stock

Students will be able to:

• Explain what a bond is and the pros and cons of investing in bonds
• Understand the various factors that can influence bond prices such as interest rates
• Identify the differences between an individual bond and a bond fund
• Read a bond fund fact sheet

Students will be able to:

• Explain what risk is and its role in investing
• Analyze effective strategies to manage investment risk such as investing early, diversification, and dollar cost averaging 
• Calculate the impact of using dollar cost averaging in hypothetical scenarios and by using the real historical performance of an index fund

Students will be able to:

• Understand what a fund is and how investing in one can create a more diversified investment portfolio 
• Explain the difference between active investing and passive investing 
• Arrange companies to create a diversified mutual fund

Students will be able to:

• Identify the differences between mutual funds, index funds, exchange-traded funds, and target date funds
• Explain the advantages and disadvantages of investing in mutual funds, index funds, exchange-traded funds, and target date funds

Students will be able to:

• Identify strategies recommended for a beginner investor and explain why these strategies may be beneficial 
• Explore their own risk tolerance through a worksheet
• Experience making a variety of investment decisions through an interactive simulation  
• Understand what a brokerage account is and how to open one

Students will be able to:

• Explain the role of financial regulations and regulatory bodies, such as the SEC and FINRA 
• Understand what insider trading is, why it is illegal, and how it can harm investment markets
• Identify why it’s important to have access to full and accurate information about potential investments
• Explain how short and long-term capital gains tax may impact an investor’s decisions and rate of returns
• Understand the difference between nominal and real rate of return on investments

Students will be able to:

• Explain what retirement means through a financial lens 
• Investigate how investing can be a powerful tool to meet their retirement goals 
• Understand what Social Security is and why most Americans cannot rely on Social Security alone for retirement 
• Explore factors that can impact how much they might need in retirement and their ability to meet their retirement savings goal

Students will be able to:

• Understand what a 401(k) plan is and its advantages
• Explain the options available to them if an employer does not offer a 401(k) plan
• Conduct research to compare different types of retirement accounts, including Roth IRAs, traditional IRAs, 401(k)s, and pensions

Students will be able to:

• Discuss the function and growth of robo-advising, along with its relationship with human investment managers
• Explain the function, pros, and cons of micro-investing
• Explore how artificial intelligence (AI) is changing the investing landscape
• Compare modern investing tools