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What's new this month for coaches and educators
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February SmartStart
Teens and time management are words that are not often used together. In fact, most adults struggle with time management – and teens are no different.

Teens need guidance to develop time management skills to:

  • Set priorities based on importance and urgency
  • Set goals for both the short-term and long-term, and create action plans to reach them
  • Create schedules to manage time effectively and allocate time for different activities
  • Organize tasks by breaking them down into smaller, manageable steps
  • Manage distractions that can derail focus and productivity
  • Estimate the time needed to fully complete tasks in order to allocate the appropriate time for them
  • Emphasize punctuality to schedule and be on time for appointments, commitments, and deadlines

Teens thrive when they manage their time in an individualized style that works for them. Those who keep some form of online or written schedule are more likely to reach their goals. Teens who practice good time management have less stress and have more balance in other areas of their lives including sports, social life, and work. Teens must make sleep an integral part of their time management. And they should learn to add a buffer of 25% to time estimates to complete projects while working around unplanned mishaps.

LifeSmarts helps teens learn time management with yearly planning, timed quizzes, monthly challenges, prioritization, and much more.

This month our focus at LifeSmarts is on all five topic areas, and we are excited to highlight these educational resources that are featured in this years’ competitions:

LifeSmarts U Lessons:


Be sure to visit LifeSmarts U for additional lessons.

Kahoot Capstone
Capstone Quizlet


Check out the hundreds of resources made by fellow LifeSmarts coaches on Quizizz, Quizlet, Kahoot, Flippity, Cram, Flashcard Machine, and more.
    State LifeSmarts Champions
    Congrats to these new LifeSmarts State Varsity and Norton Wild Card Champion teams:  

    Connecticut: Crosby Bulldogs, Crosby High School
    Florida:
    Duval 4-H LifeSmarts Team
    Hawaii:
    Kalani 4.2
    Oklahoma: Pryor Tigers
    West Virginia: LifeSmarts for Life - John Marshall High
    Gwinnett County 4-H, Georgia, Norton WC Champion 1
    Benton County 4-H, Arkansas, Norton WC Champion 2
    Madison County 4-H, Tennessee, Norton WC Champion 3
    Irmo High School, South Carolina, Norton WC Champion 4
    Puckett High School FCCLA, Mississippi. Norton WC Champion 5
    Macks Creek High School, Missouri, Norton WC Champion 6
    White Bear Lake Area Learning Center, Minnesota, WC Champion 7
    La Vernia FCCLA, Texas, Norton WC Champion 8
    Northwest High School, Missouri, Norton WC Champion 9
    Manor High School, Virginia, Norton WC Champion 10

    Congratulations to these teams, their schools and organizations, and their coaches and team members!  

    More State Champions coming soon!

    State deadlines
    Many more LifeSmarts State Championships conclude this month. Be sure to check out the details for your state here as well as on our LifeSmarts events calendar. Once again, we will be able to provide community service stipends to help defray travel expenses for many competing teams. Don’t miss your chance to advance to the 2024 National LifeSmarts Championship, April 18-21, 2024, in San Diego, CA! Contact your State LifeSmarts Coordinator with questions and get started on your path to the 30th National LifeSmarts Championship. Contact us if you have any questions or need assistance.

    January TeamSmarts Winners
    Congrats to our January TeamSmarts Challenge winners! Each winning team receives a $100 cash prize.

    Junior Varsity: Larimer County 4-H JV Team, Larimer County 4-H, Colorado 4-H
    Varsity: FMS25, Perry County High School, AL
    4-H: Varsity - Columbia County 4-H, Columbia County 4-H, Georgia 4-H
    BPA: Polaris Career Center BPOT Team 12, Polaris Career Center, OH
    FBLA: Edison_Academy_Magnet_Kirubakaran_Komuravelli, Edison Academy Magnet School, NJ
    FCCLA: Clark Senior Team, Clark FCCLA, Clark High School, SD

    January LifeSmarts / BPA Challenge Winners
    We had wonderful participation in our first-ever LifeSmarts BPA Technology & Workforce Preparation Challenge with over fifty teams competing!

    The winners are:
    JRHS Team 5D, Jean Ribault High School, Jacksonville, FL and Stow-Munroe Falls BPA Team 9, Stow, OH. Congratulations to all the teams who competed the LifeSmarts BPA Technology & Workforce Preparation Challenge and don’t forget to compete this month in the LifeSmarts BPA Personal Finance Challenge

    February Capstone TeamSmarts Challenge
    The February Capstone TeamSmarts Challenge quiz focusing on all five LifeSmarts categories is open until 11:55 PM on February 29. The quiz features topics that students have focused on this year in LifeSmarts and offers a preview of hot topics we will cover at the National LifeSmarts Championship. This quiz is open to all teams, and prizes are available to teams who have not previously won this year. Prizes will be awarded to the top-scoring Varsity, JV, 4-H, BPA, FBLA, FCCLA, and SkillsUSA teams who compete.
     
    NCL Spring Soiree Honoring LifeSmarts Partners
    The National Consumers League, the parent organization of the LifeSmarts program, is honoring long-standing LifeSmarts partners as we celebrate the 30th anniversary of LifeSmarts. If you are in the DC area, please join us! NCL is hosting its Spring Soiree on Wednesday, February 28, from 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm in Washington, DC. Click here to register for this free event.

    LifeSmarts FBLA Spring Challenge open until February 23
    FBLA teams – now is your chance to compete in the LifeSmarts FBLA Spring Challenge to earn one of the final 12 spots to advance to the Finals at the FBLA National Leadership Conference in Orlando in June. The challenge is open now and closes at 11:55 PM EST, February 23.

    To complete the LifeSmarts FBLA Challenge, teams of two high school or two middle school FBLA students (with one serving as the team captain) complete:

    1.  Two online quizzes together – one 50 question Personal Finance Quiz and one 50-question Consumer Rights Quiz. These are called “TeamSmarts” quizzes since they work as a team to complete them. These are only available from the Team Captain’s LifeSmarts Quizzes tab

    2.  Both team members also complete an individual 60-question quiz that covers personal finance and all other LifeSmarts topic areas

    More information is in the FBLA Adviser / Coach Starter Guide. Learn more here.
    Contact us if you need help. Good luck to all our FBLA teams!

    Compete in the LifeSmarts BPA Personal Finance Challenge
    BPA teams can compete this month in the LifeSmarts BPA Personal Finance Challenge now through February 29. The highest scoring BPA Varsity (grades 9-12) and Junior Varsity (grades 7-8) teams will receive cash prizes. BPA teams have two members, with one member serving as the team captain. Chapters may have as many teams as they like. IMPORTANT: If teams are Middle School students, advisors should choose BPA and JV as the team type. Advisers/coaches can learn more here and here. For questions, contact LifeSmarts. Good luck to all our BPA advisers/coaches, students and teams!

    Compete in the LifeSmarts SkillsUSA Health & Safety Challenge in February
    SkillsUSA Teams have a chance to compete in their own special LifeSmarts competition this month. The LifeSmarts SkillsUSA Health & Safety Challenge runs February 1-29. Cash prizes will be awarded to the highest scoring high school (Varsity) teams. Visit this
    page to learn more! To register a team or teams, use this information. SkillsUSA teams may have 3 to 5 members per team with one member serving as the team captain. Chapters may have as many teams as they like. This is excellent practice for the SkillsUSA Health Knowledge Bowl! For questions, contact LifeSmarts at cherylv@nclnet.org. Good luck to all our SkillsUSA advisers/coaches, students and teams!
    Sarah Weinberg LifeSmarts Memorial Scholarship due March 15
    Coaches, please nominate a stand-out graduating LifeSmarts senior for the Sarah Weinberg LifeSmarts Memorial Scholarship. This scholarship is awarded annually to a LifeSmarts participant who demonstrates a commitment to volunteer service work, like Sarah did. Scholarship applications are due March 15. One $500 scholarship will be awarded. Nominate a student here. NOTE: Students do not have to be attending the National LifeSmarts Championship to apply.

    Varsity Wild Card Applications Due Soon!  
    This year, qualifying Varsity teams – including teams from partner student leadership
    organizations (4-H, BPA, FCCLA, FBLA, SkillsUSA, and others) – are invited to apply for a Wild Card bid to compete in the 30th National LifeSmarts Championship. Three to five teams will be selected. Applicant teams must work together to complete the Wild Card TeamSmarts quiz and design an educational PowerPoint, Prezi, Google Slides or Canva presentation on a suggested LifeSmarts topic. The deadline is February 22, 2024, Note: Teams whose State LifeSmarts Championship is beyond that date may contact the LifeSmarts team for application information. Successful teams receive a $1,000 travel stipend upon completion of a community service project. Don’t miss out on your chance to compete in San Diego!

    LifeSmarts LifeSparks Awards – Apply Soon!
    The new LifeSmarts LifeSparks Award recognizes exemplary LifeSmarts Teams in honor of our milestone 30th anniversary. All LifeSmarts teams are invited to participate in this new recognition program. Teams will be honored for robust participation; demonstrating exceptional knowledge in all LifeSmarts topics, including consumer right & responsibilities, personal finance, technology & workforce preparation, health & safety, and the environment; and going above and beyond in the community. All LifeSmarts teams that gain 30 credits throughout the 2023-24 program year will be recognized with this year’s LifeSmarts LifeSparks Awards. And a few lucky teams will win special prizes! Teams do not have to compete in either the Varsity or Junior Varsity National LifeSmarts Championships to earn this honor. Teams will use the LifeSparks scorecard to map out their winning strategy to reach 30 credits by March 31, 2024, and apply for the award by the
    April 5, 2024, deadline. Visit this
    link for additional information, the points scorecard, and the official application. We can’t wait for your team to share their LifeSparks!

    Volunteer at the National LifeSmarts Championship in San Diego

    We need volunteers April 19 and 20 for the National LifeSmarts Championship in San Diego. We encourage LifeSmarts alumni, supporters, members, former coaches, and current and former state coordinators to make plans to join us. Have friends and colleagues in the San Diego area that would like to help? Please share this information with them. To sign up, visi
    t
    here.

    Throwback to 1994
    What foods were trending in 1994? Low-fat foods were increasingly popular, especially cookies and crackers. Fondue was a popular food choice. The first online food sale occurred; it was a pizza from Pizza Hut. 1994 was also the year theDietary Supplement Health and Education Act(DSHEA) was enacted by Congress, “following public debate concerning the importance of dietary supplements in promoting health.”

    These questions and answers have been updated since 1994, but it’s fun to look back to see what students were expected to know when they competed in LifeSmarts 30 years ago. Check out these throwback questions!

    Q. What organization insures a depositor’s bank account for up to $100,000?
    a. Federal Reserve Bank
    b. Federal Department of Commerce
    c. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (correct)
    (and of course, the limit has since been raised to $250,000)

    Q. One-way mobile radio service requires a user to carry a small lightweight miniature receiver capable of responding to coded signals. This device is called a:
    A. Pager

    Q. A substance used to induce vomiting in poisoning cases is known as:
    A. Syrup of ipecac
    (This is no longer routinely recommended when poison is ingested)

    Q. Name three of the top ten endangered species:
    A. Black rhino, giant panda, tiger, beluga sturgeon, blue whale, snapping turtle, mountain gorilla, green cheeked parrot, orangutan, mako shark

    Q. To protect yourself from credit fraud:
    a. Do not give out your address or salary when applying for a credit card
    b. Disclose information over the phone only when you have placed the call (correct)
    c. Purchase a large amount of credit insurance

    Answer to last month’s question: Q- Buzzers have always been a part of LifeSmarts competition. But do you know what the backup for buzzers was in the early years of LifeSmarts? A- LifeSmarts used service bells as the backup for buzzers.

    Have a great month!

    The LifeSmarts Team


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