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Information on the LifeSmarts Competition


    Who can participate in the LifeSmarts competition?    


Any teenager in grades 9-12 in any US state, the District of Columbia, US military high schools, and the US territories may participate. Each player must have an adult coach who signs on first. Teens may compete using a computer with Internet access. This may be at home, at school, or a library. Each player competes as an individual. Individuals who complete all three rounds of competition will be identified on each team and they become eligible to join an in-person team to compete live at the state or national level.

Players and teams may come from schools, families, 4-H, FCCLA, neighborhoods, workplaces, community centers, youth groups, home schools, and other groups.

LifeSmarts is also available to students in grades 6-8 through its expanding Junior Varsity program. Click here to register as a JV coach. 






    What does the competition cover?    




Each player will be tested in the areas of personal finance, health, safety, the environment, technology, and consumer rights and responsibilities. LifeSmarts covers information that consumers need to know to function in today's and tomorrow's complex marketplace.





    How do I start?    


For step-by-step directions for getting started, click here.

Players may take practice quizzes on their own. However, each player and team must have an adult coach (18 years or older) and that coach must register for the program before team members can compete online or in-person. When a coach registers a team, the coach will be given a team code. Each player on the team must know the team name and use the team code to compete. Each state has a designated time during which the competition will take place. The time frame varies for every state, but generally runs from September to January or February. Please follow the dates for your state. The designated time will not be extended and players must complete the competitions within the designated time period for their state.

Any number of players may register under one coach; players who complete all three levels of online competition are eligible to make up the team that advances to a live competition. Each student must register under his or her own name and take the tests independently. Coaches may register more than one team. Each time a coach registers a new team, a new pass code will be provided. However, a student may compete for only one team.

Each player will go through a series of three tests that will quiz their consumer awareness. Each test will be scored immediately and the player can move to the next one, or take a break between the tests. Students can expect the quizzes to get more difficult as they progress.

Eligible players from each team will be identified and the coach will be notified. In states with a state program, the top teams will be invited to an in-person state competition. Any person traveling to a state competition will be required to sign a permission and release form. In states without a state coordinator, the top team may be invited directly to the national competition. In these states, if a playoff is needed, it will be conducted online.

It is recommended that five students comprise an in-person team. Each team must have a minimum of four players in order to compete live, but an alternate is recommended. The state champion team will be eligible to represent its state at the National LifeSmarts Championship from April 20-23, 2013, in Atlanta, GA.

The state and national competitions are held live, and teams compete against one another. Rounds of competition may include:

  • Multiple-choice questions asked to individuals or teams
  • Open-ended challenge questions where players must buzz in to answer
  • Team activities where team members work together to answer a series of questions
  • Lightning rounds consisting of 10 open-ended questions on one topic
In addition, at nationals teams can expect:
  • TeamSmarts pre-competition activity
  • Team written assessments
  • Individual written assessments





    Purpose    


To address the need for more meaningful and relevant consumer education, the National Consumers League provides the LifeSmarts program to build consumer literacy by combining uniquely broad content with an innovative online, state, and national competition structure.

For more information about LifeSmarts, check additional sections of this site. Or contact the National Consumers League at lifesmarts@nclnet.org or phone 202-835-3323.






LifeSmarts is a registered service of the National Consumers League │ Contact Us