For Teachers, Counselors & Families
One project. Pick your format.
The College Project teaches one decision: finding a college that fits and knowing you can afford it before you commit. Every format below teaches that same project with the same data and the same voice. They differ in time, setting, and paper versus screen. Pick by what you have.
Paper · Full Course
The Workbook + Teacher's Guide
A 202-page hands-on workbook (The College Project, 5th edition): students build a Money Map, a Running List, a Decision Dashboard, and leave with My Plan. The free Teacher's Guide adds 9-week and 18-week pacing, chapter-by-chapter lesson flows, and a grading rubric.
Time: a quarter or a semester · Tech: none
Best for: A dedicated college unit in AVID, advisory, economics, or English; classrooms that want everything on paper.
Digital · In Your Course
The Launchpad College Project Unit
Nine interactive modules (about 20 to 25 minutes each) with live net-price and outcomes data, reflection checks, shareable cards, and a teacher dashboard that shows you what your class actually understands. Part of The Launchpad, the full personal finance curriculum by The Finance Lab.
Time: about three weeks of class periods · Tech: student laptops
Best for: Personal finance teachers who want the college decision taught inside their course.
Digital · Self-Paced
The College Project App
Free, no accounts, no logins. Two journeys: The Full Playbook, seven Levels from “Who am I?” to “Here's my plan” (20 to 40 minutes each), or Year by Year, two short check-ins per year from 9th through 12th grade. Students leave with My Plan and email it to up to three people they choose. Everything stays on the student's device.
Time: self-paced; a Level fits in one sitting · Tech: any browser
Best for: Counselors, advisory programs, and students or families working on their own.
One Period · Paper
The One Hour
The College Project One Hour student handout with a facilitation guide: a condensed 60-minute version of the project's core moves.
Time: one class period · Tech: none
Best for: A single seminar, assembly follow-up, or sub day with no devices.
One Period · Digital
Real Takes
Three 10-to-12-minute interactives, each with a matching print version: Sticker Price vs. Real Price (net-price myth-buster), FAFSA: Myth or Must (sort beliefs, leave with a checklist), and The Three Piles (decode award letters: free, earned, borrowed).
Time: one class period or less · Tech: laptops, or the print versions
Best for: Warm-ups, closers, or a one-period guest lesson.
For Home
Parent Calendars + Family Letter
Grade-by-grade parent calendars (9th through 12th, phone-importable and printable) and a one-page letter home in English and Spanish.
Time: five minutes to share · Tech: none
Best for: Back-to-school night, counselor newsletters, family nights.
If you have…
What's covered where
The formats mix well. Many classrooms run the workbook and send students to the app for the live data, or run the Launchpad unit and use the print Real Takes on no-device days.
| The goal | Workbook | Launchpad unit | The app |
|---|---|---|---|
| Decide it is worth deciding | Before You Start, Ch 1 | Why This Matters | Level 0 |
| Know yourself: careers, majors, interests | Ch 2–3 | Who You Are | Level 1 |
| See the real price (sticker vs. net) | Ch 6, 9 | Real Costs | Level 2 |
| Check the payoff: grad rates, earnings, debt | Ch 7–8 | Outcomes | Level 3 |
| All paths: community college, transfer, trades | Ch 10 | All Paths Have Costs | Level 2 + explorers |
| The aid plan: FAFSA, CADAA, scholarships | Ch 6, 12–13 | Aid Plan + FAFSA Real Take | Level 4 |
| Borrow wisely | Ch 14 | Aid Plan + Outcomes | Level 4 |
| Build your balanced list (Focus Schools) | Ch 4–5 | Final Three | Level 5 |
| The timeline: every deadline on your calendar | Junior/Senior checklists | Timeline | Level 6 |
| Read award letters (the Three Piles) | Ch 15 | The Three Piles Real Take | Year by Year, 12th |
| Choose, commit, don't disappear over summer | Ch 17–18 | Launch | Level 7 |
Questions about which format fits your setting? Email team@thefinancelab.co.