JA BIZTOWN & JA BIZTOWN ADVENTURES
Discover JA BizTown: Where Learning Comes to Life
Imagine a place where elementary students take on adult roles for the day, running businesses, managing finances, and making real-world decisions. At JA BizTown, students connect classroom lessons to practical life experiences as they explore financial literacy, work readiness, and entrepreneurship in an engaging, hands-on environment. Designed for students in grades 4–6, JA BizTown brings education to life, sparking creativity and ambition while building essential life skills. Your class has the option to visit JA BizTown in New Orleans or complete a self-guided JA BizTown.
JA BizTown Self Guided (Adventures) is a culminating experience for students that follows the JA BizTown curriculum. Students gain an understanding of various aspects of running a business as they take on the roles of chief executive officer, chief financial officer, marketing director, sales manager, and consumer via five online, self-guided adventures.
While participating in the online adventure, students will experience:
-- A fully online, self-guided learning experience that students can access inside or outside the classroom, following completion of the JA BizTown curriculum.
-- An online, interactive alternative for students who are unable to visit an on-site simulation.
-- The opportunity to explore a total of five roles in the adventures. Each role takes approximately 20-30 minutes to complete. The roles may be completed in any order, and students may replay any adventure at any time.
-- Ten business models for each adventure role. Models may be represented more than once. The businesses represented reflect the local community and may include financial institutions, retailers, media, city hall, and more.
Using a branching, story-driven treatment, each adventure provides students an opportunity to practice problem solving, decision making, critical thinking, and analytical thinking, as well as to weigh saving and spending choices, consider risk management and insurance strategies, and make personal and business-related financial decisions.
JA BizTown Self Guided (Adventures) is recommended for grades 4-6. The learning experience provides a meaningful learning opportunity that does not replace or take away from the traditional in-person simulation. The adventures support the JA BizTown curriculum and enhance student learning. They can be used as alternative simulation experiences when or if students are unable to visit an on-site location. Alternatively, the adventures may be explored before or after the on-site simulation, enhancing the overall learning experience. JA BizTown Self Guided (Adventures) requires a digital device for each participating student.
JA Learning Experiences support national and state standards in reading, mathematics, social studies, and work and career readiness. See below for more information on alignment with national and state standards.
Bridging School and the Real World
JA BizTown combines in-class learning with a day-long visit to a simulated town. This popular learning experience allows elementary school students to operate banks, manage restaurants, write checks, and vote for mayor. Students are able to connect the dots between what they learn in school and the real world.
While students may be too young to drive or hold a real job, JA BizTown gives them the opportunity to:
Operate businesses such as a bank, non-profit, insurance agencies, construction company, health care facility, utility, city hall, and more.
Write checks and use debit cards
Lead businesses as CEOs and CFOs
Through these dynamic experiences, students gain a deeper understanding of how money moves through an economy, the importance of teamwork, and the responsibilities of running a business.
A Curriculum Built for Success
JA BizTown begins in the classroom with an in-depth curriculum that prepares students for their on-site simulation. The program focuses on three core pillars:
Financial Literacy: Learning how to earn, spend, save, and invest money responsibly
Work Readiness: Developing professional skills and exploring career options
Entrepreneurship: Understanding business ownership and innovation
An Immersive, Real-World Experience
When students arrive at JA BizTown, they step into a fully interactive, simulated city complete with storefronts sponsored by real-world businesses. Each student assumes a specific job role—such as CEO, CFO, or employee—and works as part of a team to operate their business. JAGNO’s JA BizTown features partnerships with leading organizations, including:
Chick-fil-A
State Farm
Entergy
Biz New Orleans
Signworx
Capital One Bank
Palmisano
Ochsner Health
United Way of Southeast Louisiana
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana
And many more!
These partnerships offer students firsthand exposure to diverse industries and potential career paths.
Get Involved with JA BizTown
Are you an educator looking to inspire your students with real-world skills? A business leader interested in community engagement? Discover how you can participate:
