Facilitator Guide — Decision Literacy
This guide is for the adult running the lessons. You do not need to be an expert in decision-making, probability, or psychology. The lessons provide the context you need.
Purpose
Decision Literacy teaches children ages 8-12 to think more clearly about choices, uncertainty, and consequences. The curriculum builds five mental models: probabilistic thinking, recognizing cognitive biases, opportunity cost, diminishing returns, and iterative improvement. Students keep a Decision Journal throughout.
The goal is not to tell kids what to decide. It is to give them tools for thinking about how they decide.
Who This Is For
- Parents and caregivers running sessions at home
- Teachers using the curriculum as an enrichment unit
- Homeschool families running a semester-length program
- After-school clubs and co-op groups
- Any adult willing to ask questions and listen to answers
No background in statistics, psychology, or behavioral economics is required. If a student asks a question you can't answer, say "That's a good one -- let's both think about it."
How to Run a 10-20 Minute Lesson
Before the session (5 minutes): Read the lesson yourself. You don't need to memorize it. Notice the core concept and pick 2-3 of the discussion questions you find most interesting.
During the session:
- Open with the warm-up question (1-2 min) -- something like "Have you ever made a really good choice that turned out badly? Or a bad choice that somehow worked out?"
- Explain the main concept (3-5 min) -- briefly and concretely. Use the lesson's explanation or your own version.
- Work through an example (2-3 min) -- use the scenario from the lesson or one from your own experience
- Discussion (5-10 min) -- ask the discussion questions. Let students talk. Your job is to listen and follow up, not explain more.
- Decision Journal entry or exit prompt (1-2 min) -- "What did you notice today?" or "What's one thing from today you want to remember?"
Recommended Session Flow
| Step | Time | What You Do |
|---|---|---|
| Warm-up | 1-2 min | Ask an opening question from life or imagination |
| Concept | 3-5 min | Brief explanation using a concrete example |
| Scenario | 2-3 min | Work through the lesson's scenario together |
| Discussion | 5-10 min | Ask questions, listen, follow up |
| Close | 1-2 min | Decision Journal or exit prompt |
The Decision Journal
The Decision Journal is a recurring tool throughout the curriculum. Students record their reasoning before they see how a choice turns out -- this is the core habit.
How it works:
- Before making a real or hypothetical decision, write: "I think X will happen because..."
- After the outcome is known, look back: "Was my reasoning right? What did I miss?"
- Over time, patterns become visible
Journal notes are private. Tell students clearly: "Your journal is yours. I will not read it unless you want to show me."
Oral alternative: Students who prefer not to write can describe their reasoning out loud. Same benefit, different format.
Adapting for Different Settings
One Child at Home
Run the lesson as a conversation at the dinner table, in the car, or before bed. You don't need a dedicated "school time." The discussion questions work just as well over a meal as at a desk. The Decision Journal can be a notebook the child decorates and owns.
Homeschool Group
Run lessons as a group discussion. The Prisoner's Dilemma (Week 13) and The Commons Simulation (Week 14) are especially good for groups -- they require multiple participants to work properly. Pair students for some activities, use the whole group for others.
Classroom
Use the curriculum as a standalone enrichment unit. One lesson per week works well alongside other subjects. The bias-detection exercises (Week 8) pair naturally with media literacy and advertising analysis. Decision Literacy connects well to ELA (argument writing) and math (probability).
After-School Program
Keep sessions to 15-20 minutes. Use the scenario cards as structured small-group activities. The Decision Journal can be optional in this setting.
Library or Community Group
Each lesson works independently -- you don't need to run them in order. Pick the lessons that fit your group's interests. The coin flip activity (Week 1) and the bias hunt (Week 8) work especially well with new groups.
Supporting Different Learners
For younger learners (ages 8-9):
- Emphasize concrete examples over abstract descriptions
- Skip the math elements of expected value (Week 9) -- focus on the concept
- Use more physical activities (flip real coins, act out scenarios)
- Shorten the vocabulary list -- pick the 2-3 most important terms
For older or advanced learners (ages 11-12+):
- Use the extension weeks (Bayesian updating, decision trees)
- Ask students to generate their own examples of each bias
- Challenge them to find real-world examples from news or daily life
- Have them teach a concept to a younger learner -- the best test of understanding
For quiet or reluctant participants:
- Use pair discussion before whole-group sharing
- Allow written instead of verbal responses
- Ask "what do you think someone else might say?" instead of "what do you think?"
- Never call on students cold -- always make participation voluntary
Handling Sensitive Topics
When students share difficult personal decisions:
- Keep the discussion focused on the decision-making process, not the outcome or the emotional content
- Do not probe for more personal information
- Redirect to a fictional version: "What would a character in that situation do?"
On topics like gambling, financial risk, or high-stakes choices:
- Frame these as "situations people face" rather than recommendations
- The curriculum teaches reasoning tools, not what decisions to make
Checking Understanding
At the end of each lesson, use one of these prompts:
- "What's one idea from today you want to remember?"
- "Can you think of a real-life example of what we talked about?"
- "What's a question you still have?"
If students can put the core concept in their own words, they understood it. If they can produce a real-world example that actually fits, they understood it well.
Optional Extensions
Between sessions:
- Ask students to notice examples of today's concept in daily life before the next lesson
- Have them bring one real example to share at the start of the next session
- "Decision Journal challenge": record one real decision and its reasoning before next session
For advanced groups:
- Discuss real news events through the lens of the decision-making concept
- Have students design their own scenario that illustrates the concept
- Run the extension lessons: Bayesian updating (Extension 1), Decision Trees (Extension 2)
Privacy and Student Data
No student information needs to be collected. The Decision Journal stays with the student. Discussion responses stay in the room. Nothing is submitted to the website or stored anywhere. See Privacy and Student Data for details.