Financial literacy taught to kids at Oakland elementary school

Thanks, Lawrence. Only on Crowd4, working to close the wealth gap one student at a time. That is the goal of Financial Literacy for Kids, a program being taught at Franklin Elementary School in Oakland. That's right. I got a chance to actually visit the school, talk to the kids who tell me they're creating their own businesses and even helping out their parents. This pillow is about $4. I saved $126. A credit card is a type of loan where you borrow money from a credit card company. Yeah, it's true. Budgets, credit cards, and savings accounts. Not your average conversation with a 10-year-old. I'll be able to invest in bonds and stocks. But at Franklin Elementary in Oakland, that's exactly what these fifth graders are discussing. They're learning about investing and saving and budgeting and avoiding bad debt. Valerie Chapman is a former banker who transitioned to education several years ago. She blended her two passions to create financial literacy for kids. Children of color are traditionally left behind in terms of economic parity, and what we're trying to do is to intervene and disrupt so that these kids, the kids here in Oakland, have an opportunity to gain financial knowledge. A budget, yeah. Lessons range from basic money management and identifying needs versus wants, all the way to learning about the stock market. Wait, let's check who's the biggest loser. This might not be the New York Stock Exchange, but these students are learning how to invest wisely, and they're teaching me a thing or two in the process. Gainers means, like, companies that are going up, like Netflix. They're going up by $61. The National Stock Market Game challenges the students to invest $100,000 of virtual money. More than 600,000 students compete annually. And the 4th and 5th graders at Franklin? are four-time consecutive champions of the game. I like that I have control of some money, and I can choose what to do with the money even if it's fake. The light bulbs were going off in terms of Them wanting to understand how the world around them works when it comes to stocks. Tim Renzetta is the co-founder of NextGen Personal Finance. His organization has helped provide books and other resources to the program at Franklin. He wants every student in California to receive this same knowledge. California... He's used to being a leader in things. Unfortunately, when it comes to financial education, they're really at the bottom of the pack. His group, Californians for Financial Education, is working on a ballot initiative to guarantee every student gets a personal finance course before graduating high school. It's just remarkable what's... How much students want this material. It's not just the students benefiting either. I mean, I've had parents come up to me after school asking me, can we join the class? Chapman believes equipping the kids with money management skills early will set them on the path to financial success in the future, helping them to set both long-term... What are you saving up for? Come on. I'm saving up... For college and short-term goals saving up for GTA6 when it comes out The thing I really want to worry about is buying me my own phone because if I get in trouble and stuff My parents can't take away my phone because I bought the phone and I paid a bill on that phone So feeling confident about money and focused on financial success He was my favorite He was so honest. I want to buy my own phone. And I pay the bill on my phone. And I pay the bill. I was like, oh, you're going to pay the bill. He goes, oh, yeah, if I buy the phone, I'm paying the bill because mom's not taking away my phone. Oh, my God. I feel like everyone just thinks, you know, this is something that we wish we had growing up in school. You know, you did not learn about debit cards and credit cards and what bad debt is and all of that. So it's a really cool program. Ms. Chapman there is technically volunteering her time to teach this course to the kids. She says they are in need of some more resources, though, more books. Anyone in the community who wants to help with funding that program to go ahead and reach out to Oakland Unified School District if you feel inclined. Those kids, they were just great and so, so smart. So very cool to get to know them and learn about their hopes and dreams. Easy to want to help them, too, when you see how engaged and into it they are. 100%. That's great. Thank you, Noelle.