My seniors are so anxious to get out into the real world and experience either college or career success. They enjoy hands on project work that allows them time to think and reflect. I want to send them off with some important knowledge of how to be financially literate.
The students at our school are part of a college-prep, turn-around initiative to transform high-poverty schools in a high performance public high school model, that helps urban students graduate and be prepared for the challenges of college.
Our school is located in Michigan and is characterized by high-poverty and high crime neighborhoods. In spite of the challenges that my students have faced in their lives, they succeed through their resilience, intelligence, and inner strengths. Students come through our doors that have little access to even the most basic school supplies like notebooks and pencils, but we work together to ensure they have all the support they need to be successful. Many of our students will be first generation college students, and need guidance in navigating the academic and financial responsibilities of higher education.
My Project
For the past 2 years, my senior class of students have been completing a unit on financial literacy right before graduation. To help make this unit engaging, students are given the opportunity to "play the game of life" in fast forward. They investigate the costs of college, select careers based on their educational goals, buy cars and houses, have children and get married; all the while they learn how to determine the payment of their loans, pay their taxes, manage a checking account, save for retirement, and ultimately balance a budget. While they plan their future course, some things are still left up to chance and they spin the wheel to see what hand fate will deal them. I plan to use the spinner, binders, binder tabs, check registers, and flash drives to help students organize their work both manually and electronically. And at the end of the unit, they will graduate with something they can take with them to help guide them financially out in the real world.
Of all the things I teach my students in class, financial literacy is by far the most relevant, most important unit my students walk away with.
Helping to fund my project will ensure I can equip another group of students to better navigate the sometimes intimidating world of personal finances. Please assist me in providing students with the confidence and knowledge they need to apply for a loan, balance a budget, and calculate their income taxes.
Nearly all students from low‑income households
Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education. Learn more
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