KM Virtual Business HS Product Catalog

HIGH SCHOOL

VIRTUAL BUSINESS powered

by

Practice To Profit

Students apply business principles with Virtual Business simulations

Help Students Connect With Collaboration Simulations

Get your students working together and learning key collaboration skills for the clasroom and beyond—page 5

Scholarship Opportunities

Students apply their skills and compete against other students nationally and internationally for a chance to win scholarship money—page 12

Real World Applicability

Students develop skills in personal finance, marketing, business, accounting, hospitality and more that benefit any career path they choose—page 8-11

The Knowledge Matters team is passionate about technology, innovation, and education and is dedicated to inspiring today’s youth to pursue their goals and dreams. For decades, Knowledge Matters has been committed to providing experiential learning environments that allow students to transcend the walls of their classroom and gain exposure to managing businesses and developing skills they would have otherwise not had the opportunity to do. We offer nine different Virtual Business simulations in business, marketing, finance, and hospitality and tourism, as well as Collaboration Simulations that allow students to manage their businesses in groups where they may strategize and execute their business decisions together.

While developing educational simulations for 26 years has been exciting and fulfilling, there has been nothing more rewarding than seeing the positive impact our simulations have on students who have experienced them. Through classroom use, scholarship programs, and competitive events based on our simulations, we’ve seen the confidence students exhibit when articulating and making real world connections to their simulated experiences. It is truly fantastic.

If you are new to Virtual Business simulations, or a valued long time school partner, this brochure will offer highlights of the features and benefits available to you and also introduce the newest developments like the Virtual Internship Programs, student scholarship opportunities, Virtual Healthcare-Dental Assistant, and our eDynamic Learning online courseware that integrates seamlessly with the simulations.

Sincerely,

Virtual Business All-Access

Now Your Students Can Have It All - For Less.

Virtual Business All–Access Includes

+ Unlimited access to all nine Virtual Business simulations, as well as six Collaboration Simulations.

+ Free and automatic access to any new Virtual Business simulation or Virtual Business simulation expansions/updates released by Knowledge Matters.

+ Premium Support: answers to any tech support/simulation questions within one business day.

+ Build Your Own Virtual Business course — easily build your own, unique Virtual Business course from more than 100 possible lessons. Students log in and seamlessly move from one Virtual Business lesson to the next with one integrated, automatic grading process.

+ Exclusive scholarship opportunities to keep students engaged in learning and motivated to keep progressing through Virtual Business simulations.

The most popular purchasing option offers teachers access to all Virtual Business simulations at the most affordable price.

Collaboration Simulations

Help Students Develop Interpersonal Skills for College & Career Readiness With Virtual Business Collaboration Simulations.

Now more than ever, students need opportunities to interact in social situations - to collaborate, communicate, and practice teamwork.

Collaboration

+ Work as a team to manage a business

+ Implement a variety of business strategies and tactics

+ Create marketing and advertising campaigns

+ Discuss and overcome obstacles

+ Analyze data within the simulation to refine operations and improve profitability

+ Develop interpersonal skills

How to Use Collaboration Simulations:

+ Capstone Project

+ Class Competitions

+ Virtual Business Challenge Competition Practice

+ Station Rotation

+ Extra Credit

+ Extension Activities

ALL SIX COLLABORATION SIMULATIONS ARE NOW AVAILABLE AT NO COST EXCLUSIVELY FOR VIRTUAL BUSINESS ALL-ACCESS CUSTOMERS.

Self-Understanding

Social Responsibility

Accountability

Critical Thinking

Digital Literacy

PERSONAL FINANCE

Virtual Business-Personal Finance features the important financial literacy information that students may need as they progress through school and after graduation.

LESSONS INCLUDE:

+Budgeting & Saving

+Choosing & Balancing a Checking Account

+Getting a Credit Card

+Fixing Your Credit

+Education & Advancement

+Using Online Banking

+Paying Your Taxes

+Intro to Investing

+Time Management & Health

+Finding a Job

+Finding an Apartment

+Buying a Car

+Shopping

+Risk vs. Return

+Diversification

+Investing for Retirement

+Buying a Home

+Insurance

+New Career Project

Personal Finace is a top selling simulation for Knowledge Matters

Personal Finance/ Financial Literacy will soon be a graduation requirement in many states.

Personal Finance Education Nationwide

Source: http://ngpf.org 6/2023

Financial Literacy/Personal Finance coursework requirements prior to graduation are in place, or soon to be in place, in these states.

Example practice tax form from the project simulation

SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Virtual Business−Sports & Entertainment gives students the opportunity to “work” in the exciting sports and entertainment world. The online simulation teaches students the hard business decisions that go into the sports and entertainment events they enjoy in real life. Students handle promotion, ticket pricing, stadium operations and staffing, sponsors, concessions, concert booking and promotion, and more.

COURSE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THIS SIMULATION

Sports Marketing Marketing Management Entrepreneurship

HOTEL

Virtual Business−Hotel, our most realistic simulation yet, empowers students to take over the management of a full–service hotel. Developed with the support of the J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation, the online simulation draws on industry experts to model the inner workings of a hotel. Students learn the hourly and daily business decisions that go into running a high-end, successful hotel.

LESSONS INCLUDE:

+ Ticket Pricing

+ Stadium Staffing

+ Promotion and Social Media

+ Concessions

+ Picking & Promoting a Band

+ Sponsorships

+ Parking and Revenue

+ Ingress and Egress

+ Player Management

+ Sports & Entertainment Mogul

In partnership with AHLEI, the VB Hotel sim partially satisfies components of Certification in Hospitality Tourism & Management (CHTMP) and the Hospitality & Tourism Specialist (HTS) credential!

LESSONS INCLUDE:

+ Pricing & Revenue Management

+ Group Sales

+ Marketing & Public Relations

+ Customer Service: Front Desk

+ Customer Service: Social Media Feedback

+ Operations: Restaurant & Culinary

+ Operations: Banquets & Meetings

+ Operations: Housekeeping

+ Financial Reports

+ Monitoring Competitors

+ Hotel Mogul

+ Extra Credit: Mega Hotel Mogul

COURSE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THIS SIMULATION

Hospitality Finance Management Marketing Intro to Business

RESTAURANT

Virtual Business−Restaurant is the leading online simulation for teaching high school students the key business strategies and principles of restaurant management and ownership.

Featuring a large, urban cityspace and map for your students’ restaurant locations, VB Restaurant uses immersive graphics of a busy restaurant to teach students the many decisions faced by a successful restaurant manager, including social media marketing, menu design, food pricing, and much more.

COURSE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THIS SIMULATION

Hospitality

Entrepreneurship

Marketing

Intro to Business

RETAILING

Virtual Business−Retailing teaches students the business basics and exposes the secrets of retailing. Students learn the tough business decisions that impact their common shopping experiences—why stores are located where they are, how stores decide to price products, and more.

LESSONS INCLUDE:

+ Social Media Advertising

+ Market Research

+ Location Selection

+ Financial Statements

+ Menu Design

+ Pricing

+ Purchasing

+ Layout

+ Staffing

+ Marketing

+ Turnaround

+ Restaurant Mogul

COURSE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THIS SIMULATION

Intro to Business Marketing

Accounting

Entrepreneurship

Finance

LESSONS INCLUDE:

+ Market Research

+ Product

+ Place

+ Pricing

+ Promotion—Traditional

+ Promotion—Email

+ Staffing, Selling, & Customer Service

+ Purchasing & Inventory Control

+ Merchandising

+ Security & Risk Management

+ Financing & Business Planning

+ Retailing Mogul

+ Extra Credit: Turnaround

+ Extra Credit: Mega Retailing Mogul

FASHION

Virtual Business–Fashion is not just for fashion teachers! Virtual Business–Fashion uses the fashion industry and fashion retailing to teach students many core business concepts: marketing, pricing and markdowns, staffing, and retail locations. Virtual Business—Fashion also has a robust social media marketing lesson—using an app within the sim to boost your store’s sales and profits.

COURSE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THIS SIMULATION

Fashion Marketing Entrepreneurship

Marketing

Intro to Business

LESSONS INCLUDE:

+ Trend Research

+ Design

+ Buying

+ Pricing & Markdowns

+ Retail Location

+ Window Display & Merchandising

+ Staffing & Selling Strategies

+ Social Media Promotion

+ Fashion Financials

+ Turnaround

+ Fashion Mogul

MANAGEMENT

Virtual Business−Management gives your students the chance to be the boss of their own company. With the online simulation, students begin by managing a small facility and controlling limited factors. As they grow in business knowledge, they can lease as much space as they want and grow into manufacturing giants. Students get to decide what they’d do if they were the boss.

LESSONS INCLUDE:

+ Recruiting, Resumes, & Hiring

+ Employee Opinions

+ Employee Supervision

+ Strikes, Unions, & Collective Bargaining

+ Management Accounting

+ Pricing & Sales

+ Operations Management

+ Business Plan Math

+ Risk Management & Insurance

+ Forms of Business Ownership

COURSE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THIS SIMULATION

Intro to Business Management

Entrepreneurship

Finance

+ Management Mogul

+ Extra Credit: Turnaround

+ Extra Credit: Mega Management Mogul

Virtual Business−Accounting brings accounting to life by letting your students learn accounting on a business THEY run. With the online simulation, students are more vested in the numbers and learning the fundamentals of accounting because the numbers come from a business the students are running.

COURSE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THIS SIMULATION

Accounting

Intro to Business Management

Entrepreneurship

Finance

LESSONS INCLUDE:

+ T-accounts

+ Using a General Journal

+ The General Ledger

+ Worksheets & Adjusting Entries

+ Financial Statements

+ Managerial Accounting I

+ Managerial Accounting II

+ Ratio Analysis

ACCOUNTING ENTREPRENEURSHIP

Students have 20 different businesses that they can launch and grow as they learn the fundamentals of entrepreneurship. Quickly adopted and in use at high schools across the country, Virtual Business— Entrepreneurship is rapidly becoming the standard for teaching entrepreneurship.

BUSINESSES INCLUDE:

Pizza Place

Smoothie Shop

Hair Salon

Trampoline Park

Plumbing Business

Electrical Business

Fitness Center

Coffee Shop

Ice Cream Shop

T-Shirt Printing

Burrito Restaurant

Lawn Care Services

DJ Services

Batting Cage

Go-Kart Track

Online Gift Baskets

Auto Repair Shop

Physical Therapy

Bowling Alley

Catering

+ Forensic Accounting I

+ Forensic Accounting II

+ Forensic Accounting III

+ Run Your Own Business Project

+ Bonus: Multiplayer Competition

LESSONS INCLUDE:

+ Spotting the Opportunity

+ Market Research

+ Making the Plunge

- Name, Location, Form, & Taxes

+ Creating a Business Plan

- Basics & Financials

+ The Elevator Pitch

+ Raising Money & Financials

- Savings, Loans & Shares

+ Building a Team

+ Acquiring Resources

+ Going to Market

+ Operations & Feedback

+ Mega-Mogul Project

+ Shark Project

+ Business Plan Project

DECA/Knowledge Matters Digital Presentation Skills Challenge

The new DECA/Knowledge Matters Digital Presentation Skills Challenge will test your students’ skills at creating and delivering a digital presentation.

Free to participate for any student member of a high school DECA chapter. Open to any DECA chapter that has at least one active license to a Virtual Business simulation.

Thank you to all the students who participated in the 2023 KMI/DECA Digital Presentation Skills Challenge!

2023 Challenge Winners:

1st place - Emma M., Sauk Rapids-Rice High School

2nd place - Reid W., West Irondequoit High School

3rd place - Aadarsh G., Hickory Ridge High School

2023 DECA ICDC Virtual Business Challenge Winners

Meet the 2023 ICDC VBC Winners

See Inside For:

Hear What Educators Have to Say

Learn more about the great experiences our teachers have using the Virtual Business simulations in their classrooms across the country.

Virtual Business All-Access Scholarship Challenges:

+ Two opportunities to win each year that are exclusive to Virtual Business All-Access license holders

+ Added features to monitor student progress data and engagement

+ Increase student usage by reinforcing concepts during challenge practice

Upcoming Virtual Business Challenge dates:

Win Up to $5,000 in Student Scholarships!

Referral Opportunity to Connect Knowledge Matters (ROCK)

Give $200, Get $200

Are you currently using Knowledge Matters’ Virtual Business simulations and find them beneficial to your classroom instruction? Sharing your success with a colleague at another school district could earn you referral rewards to pay for future subscriptions. Year after year, you’ll have the benefit of earning your simulations through referrals to help pay for your license. Completing the referral form online takes seconds and will save the referred educator $200! There is no limit the amount of colleagues you can refer, and the more that purchase a license, the more $200 credits you will receive!

When you refer your fellow educators, they will benefit with a $200 discount on their initial license!* After they purchase, you will receive a $200 credit.

Better Together.

A Complete Curriculum for Teaching Business, Marketing, Finance, or Hospitality & Tourism

Now you’ll have the tools you need to enhance student engagement and elevate the learning experience. Knowledge Matters Virtual Business simulations and eDynamic Learning courses offer you a comprehensive set of teaching materials and the ability for your students to apply what they’ve learned.

eDynamic Learning’s award-winning comprehensive digital curriculum enables you to eliminate the need for a physical textbook. You’ll reduce hours of planning and grading time and have access to rich tech insights that can allow you to target intervention and support acceleration. All courses are fully customizable allowing you to include your own lessons, activities, projects, and Knowledge Matters Simulations! Many courses lead to industry certifications and prepare students for internships and success after graduation. Learn how our solutions together provide the optimal teaching and learning experience!

Teach It. Apply It.

+ Entrepreneurship 1a: Introduction

+ Entrepreneurship 1b: Make Your Idea a Reality

+ Management 1a: Introduction

+ Management 1b: Insight & Oversight

Pair eDynamic Learning courses with Virtual Business simulations. See all of our product alignments here:

Virtual Internship Programs

Are you finding it challenging to secure internship opportunities for your students with local businesses or help them meet career readiness standards?

Our Virtual Internship Programs offer extreme flexibility with a variety of career options for students to choose from. The year-long programs prepare students prior to stepping into a physical workspace, and gives them the opportunity to test and try concepts in a risk-free simulated environment. And unlike a physical internship, your students will get to experience and manage all aspects of a specific industry. They’ll gain valuable skills and get to uncover which areas they like most and where they’d like to focus in the future, or major in at college.

Key Benefits

Virtual Internship Program options give students flexibility to choose an option that’s right for them

A perfect year-long program that pairs nicely with many CTE pathways

Aid students in developing the top 10 employability skills and work-based competencies that companies seek Gives students an outlet to reflect on their future and hone in on areas in their desired field

Meets career readiness, preparation, and workplace essential standards

Virtual Internship All-Access Program students may particiapte in the Virtual Business All-Access Scholarship Challenges

Each program includes an exciting end-of-year culminating project

Gives teachers all the lessons, activities, tools and resources to help students find success

Learn more about the Virtual Internship Programs

Introducing:

VIRTUAL HEALTHCARE DENTAL

Through Virtual Healthcare simulations, students will gain an understanding of the day-to-day roles and different types of scenarios that healthcare workers experience. They will practice procedures virtually in a zero-risk environment and gain confidence in their skills prior to entering a clinical setting.

Dental Assistant is the very first health science simulation in the Virtual Healthcare series from Knowledge Matters. Delivered in two courses, Dental Assisting: Skills and Dental Assisting: Procedures, students apply the concepts they have learned in class as they progress through the experiential learning journey on their way to becoming a Dental Assistant. In a low-stakes virtual setting, students will gain a deeper understanding of what it takes to strive for high patient satisfaction and quality care. Within the simulation, students focus on learning the necessary skills and steps involved with each procedure. They will also enhance their ability to communicate effectively, understand their scope of practice, manage infection control, handle emergencies, chart, and manage patient notes using the CPIF tool (Clinical Patient Interaction Form).

Key Features

• Virtual Healthcare takes students out of the abstract and into the reality of a dental office

• Students gain a better understanding of how to fulfill typical dental assisting expectations, including triage and juggling various duties like office prep, admin, and scheduling

• Concepts are taught and scaffolded during lessons and students work independently during “Goal Steps” at the end of each lesson