📘 Lesson Plan: The Money Tree – Building Wealth Through Multiple Income Streams

Grade Level: 9–12 Subject: Financial Literacy / Economics / Entrepreneurship Duration: 90 minutes Standards Aligned:

Florida CPALMS Financial Literacy Standards:
- FL.912.F.1.4: Describe the variety of savings and investment products.
- FL.912.F.3.2: Analyze ways to earn income and build wealth.
- FL.912.F.4.4: Differentiate between earned income, passive income, and portfolio income.
- FL.912.F.4.3: Explain the importance of planning for spending and saving.

By the end of this lesson, students will:

Understand and identify at least 7 types of income streams used by the wealthy.
Differentiate between earned, transactional, residual, passive, and intellectual property income.
Use a Money Tree Diagram to represent how income, effort, learning, and rewards are connected.
Reflect on the difference between earning money, making money work, and keeping money.

Tree Part	Financial Concept
Roots	7 Income Streams
Trunk	Hard work, time, and discipline
Leaves	Growth, learning, reinvestment
Fruit	Financial freedom and rewards

Earned Income – Money made from a job or business.
Transactional Income – One-time sales, freelancing, commissions.
Residual Income – Ongoing income from previous efforts (e.g., memberships, royalties).
Passive Income – Earnings from rental properties, investments, etc.
Income from Intellectual Property – Royalties from books, patents, courses, art.
Small Business Income – Profits from owning or operating a business.
Dividend/Investment Income – Stock dividends, interest, capital gains.

🪴 Materials Needed

0–10 min – Hook & Discussion:

10–30 min – Direct Instruction:

30–50 min – Interactive Activity: Draw Your Own Money Tree

Students draw their own Money Tree:
- Roots: Choose 3–5 income streams they aspire to build
- Trunk: List skills, habits, and hard work needed
- Leaves: List things they need to learn
- Fruits: Envision rewards (e.g., freedom, travel, new car, investments)

50–65 min – Mini-Lecture: 3 Different Skills Discuss:

Earning Money – Getting paid for time or work.
Making Money Work for You – Investing or building assets that generate income.
Keeping Money – Avoiding debt, budgeting, and saving.

65–85 min – Reflection and Group Share

Students write answers to:
- Which income stream do you want to build first?
- What’s one skill you need to learn?
- What kind of “fruit” (reward) are you hoping to enjoy?
Students pair up and share their tree with a peer.

85–90 min – Wrap-Up & Homework

Research 3 entrepreneurs or public figures. Identify which income streams they have and how they built them.
Create a budget with $1,000/month and plan how to earn, invest, and save.

Category	Excellent (4 pts)	Good (3 pts)	Satisfactory (2 pts)	Needs Improvement (1 pt)
Income Streams (Roots)	Identified 4–5 streams with detailed, realistic ideas	Identified 3–4 streams with some detail	Identified 2–3 vague income streams	Identified fewer than 2 or unclear streams
Hard Work (Trunk)	Clear, specific habits, skills, and work ethic written	Mostly clear habits and work skills	General statements about effort	Missing or unclear effort/work values
Growth (Leaves)	Lists 3+ specific things to learn or improve for success	Lists 2–3 learning areas	Lists 1 learning area or vague goals	No learning or growth ideas listed
Rewards (Fruit)	Clearly identifies meaningful rewards (freedom, wealth, goals)	Identifies personal rewards	Lists rewards vaguely or generically	No rewards mentioned
Reflection Questions	Thoughtful, personal, and complete answers to all 3 questions	Answers all questions with some personal insight	Answers are brief or missing key reflections	One or more questions missing or off-topic
Creativity / Neatness	Creative, visually engaging Money Tree, effort shown	Visually clear, some creativity	Basic drawing with minimal effort	Unclear or incomplete drawing
Participation	Actively participated in class discussion and peer share	Participated when prompted	Minimal participation	Did not participate