5th graders think about future career paths with JA Our Nation®

Junior Achievement programs teach work readiness and behavioral skills such as what is required to land a job.

One of those programs, JA Our Nation, is redeveloped for the new school year.

Through hands-on classroom activities, the program provides upper-elementary students with practical information about the nation’s free market system and how it serves as an economic engine for businesses and careers.

The curriculum also introduces the need for entrepreneurial and innovative thinking to meet the requirements of high-growth, high-demand careers and the concept of globalization in business.

For example, in Session Three: Career Clusters, students examine career groups and the skills needed for a variety of careers when they participate in a Career Hunt. By answering questions on Career Cluster Trading Cards they discover which jobs require special degrees or training and the average salaries of certain careers.

Students also review a sample resume and identify important work-readiness soft skills necessary for career success.

In the Get and Keep the Job! Board game, they collect the soft skills employers are looking for.

JA Our Nation is a series of five required sessions and one optional supplemental session recommended for students in fifth grade. Each session is 45 minutes in length. Like all JA programs, JA Our Nation is correlated to State and Common Core Standards.

To request this program for your class, click here.

To learn more about Junior Achievement programs in Jacksonville, click here.

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The Allstate Foundation grants Junior Achievement $15,000 for youth workforce development

Junior Achievement of North Florida received a grant from The Allstate Foundation for the JA Work$ program which empowers youth to enter the workforce.

Two hundred students from Andrew Jackson and Ribault High Schools participated in the JA Personal Finance and JA Career Success programs as part of JA Work$. They learned about crucial workplace skills employers seek and the tools to find a job including resumes, cover letters, and interviewing techniques. They also set their own personal financial plan and goals!

Forty students were selected from that group to undergo training for their “job,” teaching a Junior Achievement program to kindergarten and 1st grade classes at Andrew Robinson and Sallye B. Mathis Elementary Schools.

They worked on their presentation and public speaking skills and entered the classrooms on June 2 to put their skills to the test. Not only did the students teach the elementary students about basic economic concepts covered in the Junior Achievement program, but they served as positive role models and represented a high school that the elementary students will one day be enrolled.

The kindergarten and first graders loved having them in their classroom – smiles all around – what a great way to end the school year! Special thanks to The Allstate Foundation for making this program possible.

View more photos from JA Work$

Stay connected with Junior Achievement of North Florida: Facebook // Twitter // LinkedIn // Google+ // Website

Citi volunteers impact 1,000+ students in one day!

Fifty-two Citi volunteers taught “JA in a Day” at Crown Point Elementary on May 8. They ended up impacting 1,015 students during this one-day event!

On the topic of “JA in a Day,” Principal Jayne Owens Thompson commented, “It’s such an exhilarating day! The school is covered with volunteers. There’s always excitement. The students are excited; a comment I hear over and over from students is “Best. Day. Ever!” It is just an amazing day.”

View more photos on our Facebook page!

   

     

Is your company interested in volunteering for JA in a Day? We are now registering volunteers for the 2015-16 school year. Contact us today and we can work on setting up a date and school: Tiffany Mackey, tiffany@jajax.com; 904-398-9944 ext.230.

To learn more about JA of North Florida, our programs and volunteer opportunities, please visit our website at www.jajax.com.

JA in a Day: Bank of America/Merrill Lynch @ St Clair Evans Academy

April 10, 2015 | Saint Clair Evans Academy

Nineteen Bank of America/Merrill Lynch volunteers taught Junior Achievement curriculum to students in Kindergarten through 5th grade, for a total of 388 students impacted!

TiNika Crimes taught JA Our City to 3rd grade, introducing students to zoning and the importance of money to a city.

JA Our City lets students build their own cities – complete with stand-up cardboard buildings they decorate and place on a giant floor map, in the correct zone.

In Junior Achievement’s 1st grade program, JA Our Families, one activity has 1st graders think about and write down what they need and want, and distinguish between the two.

Jessica helps a students categorize whether his video games are a need or a want.

The contents of a program kit for JA Our Families.

Volunteer Anthony Neufille taught JA Our Community, Junior Achievement’s 2nd grade program.

Bank of America/Merrill Lynch volunteer Brittany Riordan taught 3rd graders about the role of taxes in a city.

Patrick-Henry Agustin taught Junior Achievement’s 4th grade program, JA Our Region. He showed students how resources are combined to create goods and services.

Brandon Haye taught JA Our Community to Ms. Snipes’ 2nd grade class, in which students developed a sense of career awareness and learned how all jobs help a community.

During lesson two of JA Our Community, “Sweet ‘O’ Donuts”, students learn about production, goods and services when they make paper donuts in their donut shop. Brandon went the extra mile and brought real donuts for his students during the activity.

To learn more about JA in a Day, please visit our website.

Florida Blue volunteers teach JA to 1,500 students

Florida Blue volunteers and senior executives headed into the classrooms to teach Junior Achievement lessons to students in Kindergarten through fifth grade at Don Brewer, Fort Caroline and Merrill Road Elementary schools on Thursday, May 29.

During “JA in a Day” volunteers teach an entire Junior Achievement program consisting of five lessons throughout the course of one school day, a process that normally takes five weeks to complete. Due to its number of volunteers Florida Blue took over three elementary schools for the day with JA programs. “[Volunteering is] so much fun,” said Vickie Olsen, Account Manager, Florida Blue, who taught a fourth grade class. “I think I learn just as much from the kids as they do from me.”

As a result nearly 1,500 students learned about the importance of financial responsibility. Of special significance this year was the JA Girl$ and JA Boy$ gender-specific classrooms taught to the second through fifth-grade students at Fort Caroline Elementary.

Prior to Thursday volunteers underwent training by JA program staff. They were given program “kits” that contain all materials necessary to teach the five lessons and received tips for delivering the materials.

“Florida Blue volunteers were enthusiastic and engaging with the students” said Tiffany Mackey, VP of Programs, Junior Achievement. “We are thrilled about the impact JA and Florida Blue made within the Arlington community on Thursday.”

Junior Achievement’s programs are instrumental in teaching children of all ages the basics of financial literacy, work readiness and entrepreneurship. For example, students in the second-grade learned about “Our Community” and saw how money moves through communities creating jobs and funding civic services. Fifth-grade students studied “Our Nation” and learned about economic concepts such as supply and demand.

“Florida Blue is honored to support the outstanding financial literacy programs of Junior Achievement,” said Bob Wall, Vice President of Business Development and Finance for GuideWell Health, Inc. and incoming Vice-Chairman of Junior Achievement. “Our mission at Florida Blue is to help people and communities achieve better health and we know there is a strong link between financial literacy and health and wellness. Having taught for the day, our Florida Blue volunteers truly appreciate the incredible job Duval County teachers do day in and day out.”

“The biggest and most important thing is the community aspect,” said Jennifer Gray, Principal, Merrill Road Elementary. “It is a wonderful opportunity for students to interact with people outside the classroom.”

View photos from the day on our Facebook page.

Citi Volunteers Teach “JA in a Day” at Crown Point Elementary

More than 30 Citi volunteers took time out of their busy day to teach Junior Achievement to students at Crown Point Elementary on May 8, 2014.

“My one-day experience was a lot of fun, and I was very impressed with the kids’ enthusiasm throughout the day,” said Randy Richards, Internal Fraud Investigator, Citi. “They were very excited for me to be there, and sad to see me leave, which is a testament that the program truly does inspire kids to want to learn more.”

Want to get involved with Junior Achievement? Visit www.jajax.com to learn more or contact Tiffany Mackey at 904-398-9944 ext.230, tiffany@jajax.com.

Inspiring kids to dream big since 1963