Chances are you have this book in hand because you believe your child"s ability to succeed in the real world requires becoming "“financially fit"”. We developed the Financial Fitness for Life series of publications because we wholeheartedly agree! For more than 50 years, the National Council on Economic Education (NCEE) has been calling attention to the need to educate our young people effectively in the practical skills of economics and personal finance, and showing the best ways to meet that need. The current "financial fitness" program - of which this parent guide is a key component - is a dramatic step in the direction of improving economic and financial literacy. For the first time, NCEE is offering a stand-alone parent guide and we are very excited about engaging parents in teaching “financial fitness. We have found that students exposed to an economic way of thinking are more self-confident and capable of making smart financial decisions, are better in saving and investing, in building solid careers, and acting as informed citizens. In other words, when they gain an understanding of how the "“real" world works, they improve their prospects for better lives in it. We also know that a key ingredient for any child"s successful learning is parental involvement in their education. Research shows that students learn a considerable amount of their economic decision making from their parents. Therefore, the activities we have provided in this book for you to do with your child can be a very important component of your child"s financial fitness development. The complete ten-book series contains two parent"s guides - one to accompany lessons geared to grades K-5, and another for grades 6-12. In each guide book, there is an overview of the content covered in each student workbook, designed for the four grade levels (K-2, 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12). Each level has an accompanying teacher resource manual which is aligned with your parent guide. The parent guide contains suggested activities that are fun and that you and your child can do together to enhance learning personal finance principles and skills. Each guide also contains a listing of additional resources.Also available:Financial Fitness For Life: Teacher Guide Grades 6-8 - ISBN 1561835447Financial Fitness for Life: Steps to Financial Fitness - Grades 3-5 - Student Workouts - ISBN 1561835439The Council for Economic Education envisions a world in which people are empowered through economic and financial literacy to make informed and responsible choices throughout their lives as consumers, savers, investors, workers, citizens, and participants in our global economy. Some of the areas in K-12 education we publish in include: - Establishing and building credit - Managing personal finances - Understanding economics on a local, national, and global level - Using economics in other subject areas: Social Studies, Geography, History, etc.