It’s time for some holiday finance fun! Introducing December Dash - a word scramble that will have your students moving around the classroom to solve clues. This activity features a mix of terms related to both personal finance and various December holidays. Time to get dashing!

The Activity

The activity is as simple as it is engaging: teachers place word scramble clues around the room and each one reveals a personal finance or holiday-related term. Students embark on their journey to solve each clue, unveiling terms ranging from “philanthropy” and “taxes” to “nutcracker” and “umoja”.

Plan for this activity to take around 15 minutes. As designed, students may use their phones to scan the QR codes on each clue for an additional hint and to research terms they may not know. However, this activity can be run without devices as well.

The Prep & Materials

1. Review the activity answer key, which includes a teacher guide for running the activity.
2. Print the Clues Slide Deck or the Clues and Hints Slide Deck, depending on whether you’d like students to see hints via QR code or printed alongside the clues. 
3. Print a copy of the Student Worksheet for each student
4. Hang the Clues around your classroom
5. You're ready to run the activity. Have fun!

Get more holiday inspiration at our upcoming Virtual PD: Holiday Activity Ideas for the Classroom! Wednesday, 12/6 at 4:00 pm Pacific / 7:00 pm Eastern. 

About the Author

Kathryn Dawson

Kathryn (she/her) is excited to join the NGPF team after 9 years of experience in education as a mentor, tutor, and special education teacher. She is a graduate of Cornell University with a degree in policy analysis and management and has a master's degree in education from Brooklyn College. Kathryn is looking forward to bringing her passion for accessibility and educational justice into curriculum design at NGPF. During her free time, Kathryn loves embarking on cooking projects, walking around her Seattle neighborhood with her partner and dog, or lounging in a hammock with a book.