The Bank At School program is available to third through sixth grade classrooms throughout Illinois in cooperation with local financial institutions and the Illinois State Board of Education. The mission of the program is to teach Illinois children to make knowledgeable decisions as savers, spenders, borrowers and money managers.

The program combines classroom lessons with expertise from the financial community to teach students money-management skills. Participating schools partner with a financial institution that will offer the opportunity for students to open savings accounts in a “bank at school.” These accounts will earn interest, and students will receive periodic statements. Withdrawals must be made at the financial institution.

Between classroom visits from the financial partner, classroom teachers will lead lessons on money and money management. Students participate in activities that teach about income, decision making, saving, spending, interest, goal setting and budgeting. The lesson plans were developed by the State Treasurer’s Office and correlate with fifth and sixth grade Illinois Learning Standards, but can be easily adapted for other grade levels.

The Treasurer’s Office provides a semester-long unit guide for teachers. The curriculum is available in Chinese, German, Greek, Hebrew, Italian, Lithuanian, Polish, Spanish, and Ukrainian, and has been adopted by Greece and Poland for their educational purposes. You can download the English version below.

Bank At School: Unit One

The Treasurer's Office also offers a money management curriculum for young adults. Titled "Money, Banking and Credit," the activity workbook walks users through the basics of budgeting, managing checking and savings accounts, shopping for credit and maintaining a good credit score. You can download the workbook below.

Bank At School: Money, Banking and Credit

For more information, please contact the Financial Education Department at (312) 814-1700.