In this 7-week flex course, students will use Nearpod to learn through interactive activities about how to pay for college including the FAFSA, Scholarships, Grants, and Student Loans. This course will be filled with hands-on learning!  My course is a great way to help students find ways to pay for college! 

Many learners start with little knowledge about handling finances.  After the course, they will grow to enjoy learning about money and will be much more confident in their finances!

This course will include videos, articles, interactive activities, and an exit ticket for each lesson.  I'm a firm believer in creating engaging learning experiences.  I'm excited to begin a journey of discovering paying for college with your learner!

Students will be able to interact with each other on the Outschool platform. Students will work together to generate ideas in response to multiple scholarship essay prompts to help pay for post-high school academic plans. Students will brainstorm various strategies and sample responses for several scholarship essay prompts. Then, they will engage in a guided Gallery Walk to view other students' ideas and responses.

This is a FLEX course, which means that there are no live meetings, but I will still be interacting frequently with students electronically and ask that they interact with each other as they are comfortable. We will interact using the classroom page and using Nearpod, a collaboration website that is fun, easy to use, and requires no email login information.

A Nearpod will be provided every week with my voice as an audio guide. There will be multiple interactive activities throughout the lesson so students can synthesize what they are learning and keep track of it. I will ask students to share their work with me and/or the class and give them feedback on this work. I will pose a weekly discussion question for students to answer in the classroom or Nearpod via video, picture, or chat and I will ask that classmates respond to each other's submissions. There will also be a review quiz after each lesson on Nearpod as a check for understanding.

Agenda:
Week 1: Paying for College
*Why Go to College
*Your Guide to Choosing a Major
*Understanding College Costs
*Sticker Price vs Net Price
*How Much Will Your College Actually Cost
Week 2: Applying for the FAFSA
*How to Pay for college
*Biggest Financial Aid Myths
*FAFSA Overview
*What is the Student Aid Report
*What is the Expected Family Contribution
Week 3: Scholarships & Grants
*Grants vs Loans vs Scholarships
*Searching for Scholarships
*Types of College Grants
Week 4: Student Loans
*Different Types of Federal Student Loans
*Federal Loan Limits, Interest Rates, and Fees
*Responsible Borrowing
*Rule of Thumb for Student Loans
*Comparing Federal and Private Student Loans
*College and Career Choices
Week 5: Financial Aid Packages
*How to Read your Financial Aid Award Letter
*Practice Reading Various Financial Aid Offers
*How to Read a College Financial Aid Statement
*Accepting Aid
Week 6: time for Payback
*Play Game to Make Financial Decisions Before, During, and After College
Week 7: Budgeting During College
*College Students Struggle with Money Management
*A Monthly College Budget

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