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Understanding Taxes:Just a Point and Click Away!

And Finally . . . Cool Stuff Discover how many hours per year citizensspend preparing their taxes or in what countrypeople must pay a tax on every television setthey own! Little-known tax trivia and more canbe found at Cool Stuff. Students can travelthrough time or start their own business at “TaxInteractive,” or they can learn more about VITA e3, a volunteer community program in

which students assist individualswith their taxes. It’s allhere at Cool Stuff! 

Who? ? ?? ? ? ? What? When? Where? Why? How?

“Understanding Taxes” is now online! The program features over 1100 pages of updated, expanded content redesigned to make learning taxes interactive, relevant,and fun!Designed by teachers for teachers “Understanding Taxes” makes real worldconnections to classroom instruction. It’s agreat resource for high schools, communitycolleges, and the general public for learningmore about the history, theory, and application of taxes in the United States. 

http://www.irs.gov/app/ understandingTaxes/ index.jsp

For More InformationIf you have questions regarding the“Understanding Taxes” program, contact your local IRS office. Go to www.irs.gov,

click Individuals, then under Resources clickContact My Local Office. If you need tax forms and instructions for yourclassroom, you can download the forms fromthe IRS Web site at www.irs.gov or you can 

call 1-800-829-FORM. (Note: You can order 100 copies of a form.) 

Publication 2181 (Rev. 11-02)

Catalog Number 24585I

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• six media-rich PowerPointTM

presentations that can be usedto support important topics,illustrating key tax conceptsand enhancing understanding. 

“Understanding Taxes” can be

accessed directly online or, for 

a more traditional approach, as 

a package of print resources in

PDF format. Each lesson includes one

or more components, which can be downloadedindividually or as a complete lesson pack.

Student Area—Brings Learning To Life Students will find a variety of interactive featuresto help them understand the basics of taxes andbring their learning to life. Each lesson has a special student page that serves as the starting pointand links to supporting components and activitiessuch as • Activities—Students can balance the national

budget, discover how their tax dollars arespent, and lobby for a cause as they choosefrom more than 75 interactive activities. Activitytypes include drag and drop, matching, multiplechoice, online crosswords, memory concentration games, interactive map activities, virtualfield trips, and more!

• Tax Tutorials—Who qualifies as a dependent?

What is an exemption? How do you report interest on a Form 1099-INT? Twelve tax tutorialsguide students through the basics of tax preparation, providing a non-threatening environmentin which students learn the background neededto file a tax return electronically.

• Simulations—

Students canstep into theshoes of over15 differentcharacters and situations and explore the ins andouts of filing tax returns electronicallythrough realistic simulations.

• Assessments—Online graded assessments

follow standardized testing formats to checkstudents’ understanding. 

Student lessons can be used in the classroomor assigned as independent study offeringteachers even more flexibility.

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