JA In the Classroom
JA In the Classroom
Bring industry into the classroom with K-12th grade Junior Achievement programs.
JA programs can be implemented as in-class programs or taught remotely. Most JA Program content is available online in the JA Connect Learning Platform. Students can access digital materials directly through our learning platform and teachers can choose to make student files available through their existing classroom platforms or print materials for the student activities. Kit-based and digital Spanish translated versions of JA Elementary programs are also available.
JA Elementary programs consist of five 45-minute sessions. JA Middle and High School programs have flexible session lengths that can be adjusted to fit the needs of your classroom. All programs can also be offered as after-school programs.
Volunteers are recruited by JA to assist teachers in program delivery. Our vast volunteer network includes local community members and leaders, small business owners and corporate supporters. Learn more about volunteering in the classroom here.
Request a program
For our in-class programs and Spanish-translated programs, please contact Duchi Galvez at dgalvez@jasandiego.org.
JA In the Classroom
Bring industry into the classroom with K-12th grade Junior Achievement programs.
JA programs can be implemented as in-class programs or taught remotely. Most JA Program content is available online in the JA Connect Learning Platform. Students can access digital materials directly through our learning platform and teachers can choose to make student files available through their existing classroom platforms or print materials for the student activities. Kit-based and digital Spanish translated versions of JA Elementary programs are also available.
JA Elementary programs consist of five 45-minute sessions. JA Middle and High School programs have flexible session lengths that can be adjusted to fit the needs of your classroom. All programs can also be offered as after-school programs.
Volunteers are recruited by JA to assist teachers in program delivery. Our vast volunteer network includes local community members and leaders, small business owners and corporate supporters. Learn more about volunteering in the classroom here.
Request a program
For our in-class programs and Spanish-translated programs, please contact Duchi Galvez at dgalvez@jasandiego.org.
Elementary Programs
Kindergarten
JA Ourselves® introduces students to the intersection of financial literacy and early elementary grades social studies learning objectives. Through hands-on classroom activities, the program provides students with an introduction to personal economics and the choices consumers make to meet their needs and wants. It also introduces students to the role of money in society while providing them with practical information about earning, saving, and sharing money.
Grade 1
JA Our Families® explains how family members’ jobs and businesses contribute to the well-being of the family and of the community. The program introduces the concept of needs and wants and explores the ways families plan for and acquire goods and services. Students analyze their own skills to determine ways they can support their families.
Grade 2
Through JA Our Community, students are immersed in the daily life of their community—the people who work there, the money decisions they make, the flow of the community’s economy, and the importance of being an involved and responsible community member. They are introduced to the types of skills and knowledge necessary to be a worker in the community: the experience of working as a team in a pizza shop, buying and selling of goods and services in exchange for money, getting paid and paying taxes, exercising their civic duty to make decisions for the good of the community, and using digital tools.
Grade 3
JA Our City introduces third-grade students to financial literacy, entrepreneurship, and social studies learning objectives. These objectives include personal economics, the importance of economic exchange in a city, and an understanding that entrepreneurs promote a healthy economy within a city. Through engaging activities, students learn about money choices and how the flow of money promotes a city’s vitality and health.
Grade 4
JA Our Region® introduces students to entrepreneurship and how entrepreneurs use resources to produce goods and services in a region. Students operate a hypothetical hot dog stand to understand the fundamental tasks performed by a business owner and to track the revenue and expenses of a business.
Grades 3-5
JA More than Money® introduces students to financial literacy and entrepreneurship, and to social studies learning objectives that include money-management skills, goods and services, and global markets. Through hands-on activities and a JA cast of characters serving as symbols for financial literacy and entrepreneurship concepts, students will learn a practical approach to starting a business and making smart decisions about managing money.
Grade 5
JA Our Nation® provides practical information about the need for employees who can meet the demands of the 21st century job market, particularly high-growth, high-demand jobs. Through hands-on classroom activities, students learn about the free-market system and how it serves as an economic engine for business and careers. It introduces the need for entrepreneurial and innovative thinking and the concept of globalization in business. By the program’s end, students will understand the skills, especially in science, technology, engineering, and math, that will make their futures brighter.
Elementary Programs
Kindergarten
JA Ourselves® introduces students to the intersection of financial literacy and early elementary grades social studies learning objectives. Through hands-on classroom activities, the program provides students with an introduction to personal economics and the choices consumers make to meet their needs and wants. It also introduces students to the role of money in society while providing them with practical information about earning, saving, and sharing money.
Grade 1
JA Our Families® explains how family members’ jobs and businesses contribute to the well-being of the family and of the community. The program introduces the concept of needs and wants and explores the ways families plan for and acquire goods and services. Students analyze their own skills to determine ways they can support their families.
Grade 2
Through JA Our Community, students are immersed in the daily life of their community—the people who work there, the money decisions they make, the flow of the community’s economy, and the importance of being an involved and responsible community member. They are introduced to the types of skills and knowledge necessary to be a worker in the community: the experience of working as a team in a pizza shop, buying and selling of goods and services in exchange for money, getting paid and paying taxes, exercising their civic duty to make decisions for the good of the community, and using digital tools.
Grade 3
JA Our City introduces third-grade students to financial literacy, entrepreneurship, and social studies learning objectives. These objectives include personal economics, the importance of economic exchange in a city, and an understanding that entrepreneurs promote a healthy economy within a city. Through engaging activities, students learn about money choices and how the flow of money promotes a city’s vitality and health.
Grade 4
JA Our Region® introduces students to entrepreneurship and how entrepreneurs use resources to produce goods and services in a region. Students operate a hypothetical hot dog stand to understand the fundamental tasks performed by a business owner and to track the revenue and expenses of a business.
Grades 3-5
JA More than Money® introduces students to financial literacy and entrepreneurship, and to social studies learning objectives that include money-management skills, goods and services, and global markets. Through hands-on activities and a JA cast of characters serving as symbols for financial literacy and entrepreneurship concepts, students will learn a practical approach to starting a business and making smart decisions about managing money.
Grade 5
JA Our Nation® provides practical information about the need for employees who can meet the demands of the 21st century job market, particularly high-growth, high-demand jobs. Through hands-on classroom activities, students learn about the free-market system and how it serves as an economic engine for business and careers. It introduces the need for entrepreneurial and innovative thinking and the concept of globalization in business. By the program’s end, students will understand the skills, especially in science, technology, engineering, and math, that will make their futures brighter.
Middle School Programs
Middle School Programs
Grades 7-8
6-13 sessions
JA Financial Literacy Pathway
JA Finance Park introduces students to the subjects of savings, investing, credit, and budgeting. They develop lifelong skills through in-class and simulated experiences. The simulated experience can be at our JA Campus or virtual.
Grades 6-8
6 sessions
JA Financial Literacy and JA Work and Career Readiness Pathways
JA Economics for Success reveals the heart of a successful economic life: choosing the right career and managing money properly.
Grades 6-8
7 sessions
JA Work and Career Readiness Pathway
JA Global Marketplace Blended Model introduces students to the global marketplace and the ways in which countries buy and sell from each other. Through completion of this program, students gain an understanding of producers and consumers in the interconnected global market. They analyze the similarities and differences among countries and the effects of free enterprise.
Grades 6-8
3-6 sessions
JA Work and Career Readiness Pathway
JA It’s My Job (Soft Skills) helps students understand the value of professional communication and soft skills, making them more employable to future employers across multiple career clusters. Lessons focus on social and soft skill competencies that relate real-life experiences to job skills and prepare students for their future careers. Topics include communication and presentation skills, manners, listening skills, and cell phone etiquette.
Grades 6-8
6 sessions
JA Work and Career Readiness Pathway
It’s My Future offers students practical information to help prepare them for the working world. Students develop the personal branding and job-hunting skills needed to earn a job. During the program students research potential careers, create a basic resume, recognize appropriate behavior for an interview, and differentiate between soft and technical skills.
Grades 6-8
6 sessions
JA Entrepreneurship Pathway
JA It’s My Business! Provides students an opportunity to learn how to turn an idea into a business. The program introduces students to the process of design thinking as a problem-solving process and provides an authentic entrepreneurial experience for students, with each session building toward a product-pitch competition.
Grades 6-8
1-2 sessions
JA Work and Career Readiness Pathway
With JA Excellence through Ethics, students learn the importance of ethics and ethical decision-making and how ethical and unethical choices affect everyone in a community. Along with a business professional volunteer, the teacher helps students explore personal values, character development, and ethics while offering the opportunity to discuss related issues. The program’s aim is to show students that the adults around them value ethical behavior. Students need strong character qualities, including respect, fairness, and a positive attitude, to become self-disciplined, lifelong learners at school, work, and beyond. They discover that character matters.
Grades 6-8
1-3 sessions
JA Work and Career Readiness Pathway
In JA Career Speaker Series, a volunteer guest speaker visits the classroom and shares information about his or her career, work, and education experience. The speaker may bring props, work samples, or other visuals to help engage students.
High School Programs
Grades 9-12
9-14 Sessions
JA Entrepreneurship Pathway
JA Company Program tasks students with creating a business that solves a problem or addresses a need in their community. Students learn the practical skills required to conceptualize, capitalize, and manage their own business venture with the mentorship of community volunteers. Throughout the process of building their own company, students collaborate, make crucial business decisions, communicate with multiple stakeholders, and develop entrepreneurial knowledge and skills. Students will have the option to submit their business to our annual Student Company of the Year Competition.
This program typically begins in late January with the competition event taking place in late April.
Grades 9-12
3-6 sessions
JA Financial Literacy Pathway
The JA Take Stock in Your Future program introduces high school students to investing in the stock market. Students learn basic concepts about how the stock market operates, the impact of current events on the stock market, and how to develop long-term investment strategies. For many participants, this program culminates in our annual countywide JA Stock Market Challenge competition.
This program typically begins in late January with the competition event taking place sometime in March.
Grades 9-12
6-13 sessions
JA Financial Literacy Pathway
JA Finance Park introduces students to the subjects of savings, investing, credit, and budgeting. They develop lifelong skills through in-class and simulated experiences.
This program culminates in a simulated experience at our JA Campus.
Grades 9-12
8 sessions
JA Financial Literacy Pathway
Students experience the interrelationship between today’s financial decisions and future financial freedom. To achieve financial success, they learn about money management: earning, careers and income, budgeting, savings, credit and debt, consumer protection, smart shopping, risk management, and investing.
Grades 9-12
5-11 sessions
JA Financial Literacy Pathway
JA Titan Blended Model is a simulation-based program in which high school students compete as business CEOs in the phone industry, experiencing firsthand how an organization evaluates alternatives, makes decisions, analyzes the outcomes of those decisions, and then strategizes what to do next.
Grades 9-12
Semester-long
JA Financial Literacy Pathway
This program connects high school students to the economic principles that influence their daily lives as well as their futures. The course addresses each of the economics standards identified by the Council for Economic Education as being essential to complete a high school economics course.
Overview
Grades 9-12
3-6 sessions
JA Work and Career Readiness Pathway
Students learn the value of professional communication and soft skills, making them more
successful with future employers across career clusters. Resume and interviewing skills are included.
Grades 9-12
1 session
JA Work and Career Readiness Pathway
In JA Career Speaker Series, a volunteer guest speaker visits the classroom and shares information about his or her career, work, and education experience. The speaker may bring props, work samples, or other visuals to help engage students. This can be in-person or virtual.
Grades 9-12
7 sessions
JA Work and Career Readiness Pathway
JA Career Success is an engaging and comprehensive program that introduces high school students to the workplace. As interns, students participate in realistic work experiences in multiple departments of a fictional company, Orbit Boom. The program teaches soft skills and business best practices in the context of scenarios and assignments.
Grades 9-12
3-14 sessions
JA Entrepreneurship Pathway
JA Be Entrepreneurial teaches students about the mindset and the skills needed for success by aspiring entrepreneurs and innovators. This program consists of three modules that can be taught as individual programs or together as one all-inclusive program.
In the JA Creative Problem Solving module, students learn and apply design thinking, an innovative process for problem-solving used by entrepreneurs to brainstorm customer-centric ideas.
In the JA Rapid Business Planning module, students learn about Lean Canvas. The business model canvas is an easy-to-understand, one-page business plan that is the foundation for fleshing out a business idea.
In the JA Think Like an Entrepreneur module, students develop a mindset that enables opportunity identification, innovation, value creation, and problem-solving.
