Students will experience the project hook through a realistic paycheck-and-bills challenge, surface questions about adult financial choices, and begin organizing an evidence-based investigation into careers, housing, and cost of living for a future-life plan.

Students will use a mock payday simulation to surface questions about adult life costs, practice organizing evidence they will need to collect, and draft a peer-reviewed investigation plan for researching jobs, housing, and budgeting choices in a realistic future-life scenario.

Students will gather and organize credible evidence about jobs, housing, commuting, and local costs; calculate realistic monthly budget amounts; record notes from community partners; and complete a midpoint evidence check with peer feedback so their future-life plans are traceable, accurate, and ready for later analysis and revision.

Students will analyze evidence from their career, housing, map, and budget research; identify patterns, anomalies, and trade-offs; revise their future-life plan portfolio with peer and expert feedback; and prepare an evidence-based defense for the upcoming showcase.

Students will present and defend their completed future-life plan portfolio and map-based planning display to families and invited experts, respond to questions with evidence from their research and calculations, and document one final revision or next step based on showcase feedback.