An Integrated Curriculum For The Washington Post Newspaper In Education Program

Nov. 6, 2015 ©2015 THE WASHINGTON POST

Volume16 Issue 3

You Can Count on It

■ Student Activity: One to 25 Percent■ KidsPost Reprint: “Why Money Matters: Kids learn about finance in school”■ Student Activity: Monthly Income and Expense Log■ Student Activity: A Debit Card or a Credit Card?■ Student Activity: Living on a Minimum Wage

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An Integrated Curriculum For The Washington Post Newspaper In Education Program

Nov. 6, 2015 ©2015 THE WASHINGTON POST

Volume16 Issue 3

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Whether the youngest student is learning to count coins and to identify a nickel or an older student is forming a budget with long-term goals in mind, financial literacy is in action.

“A Debit Card or a Credit Card?” utilizes two elements of journalism — the interview and advertising. Students are asked to talk to users of debit and credit cards to get first-hand information. They then

review advertisements from banks and other financial institutions that offer credit and debit cards to become more discerning consumers.

Using classified ads, students begin to face the reality of living on a minimum wage in their community.

No matter the allowance, the weekly earnings or monthly wage, a budget and plan for saving is needed. You can count on it!

Jar#1 Charity

Jar#2 Quick cash Jar#3 Medium-

term savings

Jar#4 Long-term savings C

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Name ___________________________________________________________ Date______________________________________

One to 25 Percent

Penny Nickel Dime Quarter

Note: Coins are enlarged or reduced for illustration purposes and are approximate in size relativity.

When your parents pay for something, they can use coins, paper bills, a credit card, a debit card or a check. There are four main coins to use. They are named a penny, a nickel, a dime and a quarter. Each of them is worth a different amount. When someone asks how much money you have, you can tell them how many cents or dollars and cents you have. The cent symbol looks like this: ¢. One hundred cents equal one dollar. The dollar symbol looks like this: $.

= ___________ ¢ or $ ___ . __________

= ___________ ¢ or $ ___ . __________

= ___________ ¢ or $ ___ . __________

= ___________ ¢ or $ ___ . __________

Count Your Coins1. After helping to clean the house, you have found the following coins. How many pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters do you have? Total how many cents you have.

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Name ___________________________________________________________ Date______________________________________

2. Your uncle gives you five quarters. How much money is this? ______¢ or $ ____.________

3. Count each group of coins. a. b. c.

4. You are saving your allowance. If you get $1.50 each week, how many weeks will it take you to save $10.00? __________________ weeks

Create a Bar Graph5. The ten dollar bill below is divided into four segments. How much money does each segment equal? $ ____________________. Each segment is ________% of the whole. a. You have four quarters which equal $ ____.________. This is ____________% of $10.00. Mark and color that percent on the $10.00 bill.

b. You save for several weeks. You now have the coins shown on the left. Add the coins. These coins equal ____________¢ or $____._______.

= ___________ ¢ or $ ___ . _________ = ___________ ¢ or $ ___ . ________= ___________ ¢ or $ ___ . ________

c. Show this additional money on the $10 bill. Color it.

What percent of the $10 bill is now colored? ______ percent. This equals $ ____.__________.

One to 25 Percent continued

An Integrated Curriculum For The Washington Post Newspaper In Education Program

Nov. 6, 2015 ©2015 THE WASHINGTON POST

Volume16 Issue 3

Monica Casters took a trip to the future a few weeks ago:

Suddenly, the eighth-grader was 30 years old, married, with a child and working at a job that paid her $93,000 a year. This was no dream, but it wasn’t real, either. She was

visiting Junior Achievement Finance Park, an educational center in Fairfax where kids learn about managing money. Lessons about spending, saving and borrowing are becoming a regular part of classes, sometimes starting in elementary school.

Money senseWhy do kids need to know about

money?“All kids see parents do with

money is spend it,” said Neale Godfrey, author of a book called “Money Doesn’t Grow on Trees.”

KIDSPOST

Kids learn about finance in school

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An Integrated Curriculum For The Washington Post Newspaper In Education Program

Nov. 6, 2015 ©2015 THE WASHINGTON POST

Volume16 Issue 3

6

But the amount of money you can spend isn’t endless. “There really is such a thing as a budget,” Godfrey said. (A budget is a plan that limits how much you spend on different things to fit the amount of money you have.)

Local educators agree. Maryland and Virginia school boards decided in the past three years that students must learn about money-related topics in school.

In Fairfax County Public Schools, all eighth-graders take a half-day field trip to Finance Park after spending 20 hours in class talking about managing money.

On a recent visit, students from Carl Sandburg and Lanier middle schools were each given a card that told them how old they were, whether they were married or had children, and how much money they earned each year. Their task? Visit 18 pretend stores or offices and choose how much of their imaginary salary to spend at each place.

That meant some big decisions. A house with four bedrooms or a smaller one with a pool? A family car or a convertible? Movie channels or basic cable?

Students discovered that staying within their budgets wasn’t always easy.

“I went over my limit on clothes,” admitted Monica, who attends Sandburg, just south of Alexandria. “I’ve learned I can’t have everything I want.”

Kareem Homsi, a student at Lanier in Fairfax, ended up with more savings than his budget required by choosing a practical car.

“Maybe after that I can buy the convertible,” Kareem said.

Start smallBuying a car involves a large

amount of money, but spending habits start with much smaller purchases. Let’s say there’s a $30 Lego set that you want, but Mom says you have to buy it yourself. That may seem impossible when your allowance is $5 a week.

Godfrey says that the Lego set is a reachable goal even for kids who are tempted to spend money as soon as they get it. The key is setting up a system. Her system has four jars into which you put all the money you receive. (You can ask your parents to save empty jam jars.)• Jar 1: Charity — food bank,

cancer organization, etc.• Jar 2: Quick cash — apps or ice

cream.• Jar 3: Medium-term savings —

toy, gifts for friends and relatives, video game.

• Jar 4: Long-term savings — computer, college, car.She suggests putting 10 percent

of your money in the first jar, then splitting the rest evenly among

the others. Under this system, you would divide your $5 allowance by putting 50 cents in the charity jar and $1.50 in jars 2, 3 and 4. Money for toys comes out of Jar 3, so if you put in $1.50 every week, the Lego set would be yours in 20 weeks. It’s easy to keep track of if you create a monthly chart of the things you need to buy — a birthday gift for Dad, maybe — and the things you want to buy. And don’t sneak money out of long-term savings!

Bank itYour long-term savings shouldn’t

just sit in a jar, Godfrey says. It belongs in a bank, where it can earn interest (the small amount of money the bank pays you for keeping it in a savings account). Ask your parents to open an account for you at their bank or see if your school has an in-school bank branch. For example, at Glen Haven Elementary School in Silver Spring, any student with $5 can open an account.

“We’ve had deposits from two cents to $200,” said Yvette Reynolds, a teacher who coordinates the Educational Systems Credit Union branch.

Reynolds said the accounts have helped students think beyond the latest toy or game they see advertised on television.

“Everything is buy, buy, buy,” she said. Having the bank at school sends a different message. “They learn the importance of savings,” Reynolds said.

— Christina BarronJanuary 25, 2013

Eighth-graders Patrick Aitken, left, and Jose Bejarano go over their budgets at Junior Achievement Finance Park in Fairfax.

Name ___________________________________________________________ Date______________________________________

INCOME Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 TOTAL

Allowance

Work

Gift

Other

Total INCOME Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 TOTAL

Lunch

Lesson Fee

Miscellaneous

Public: Bus/Metro

Car Payment

Car Insurance

Car Fuel

Cell Phone

Clothing

Entertainment

Gifts to Others

Toiletries

Tithe

Savings

Total

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Monthly Income and Expense Log

Name ___________________________________________________________ Date______________________________________

A Debit Card or a Credit Card?You should understand the difference between a debit card and a credit card. They might look the same: have the same number of digits on the front, the holder’s name, and even a credit card “logo,” such as VISA or MasterCard, on the front. However, credit and debit are very different ways of paying for products and services.

A debit card normally allows a consumer to spend only the amount of money that he or she has in the account to which the debit card is linked. With a credit card, consumers can borrow money from the financial institution that issued the credit card to them, up to a certain limit. As a consumer, you will pay interest and any additional fees on the funds you borrow. If you don’t pay the balance by the payment due date indicated on your statement, you will be charged interest and, therefore, pay more for your purchase.

In order to be smart consumers, you should understand the advantages and disadvantages of each.

Interview Credit and Debit Card Holders1. Interview adults who use both credit and debit cards. Questions would include: a. When do you use your credit card? For what kinds of purchases do you use it? b. For what different kinds of purchases do you use your debit card? c. Are you charged by the bank to use one or both cards? d. When is money withdrawn from your account? Immediately? On a certain day each month? e. Would you recommend one kind of card over the other?

Compare Shopping Using Banking Ads2. Find the business pages of the most recent edition of The Washington Post. In the daily paper, this section is found in the back of the “A” section. In the Sunday edition, Business is its own stand-alone section, Section G. Students will find advertisements for two different banks — if necessary from two different days — and go to the websites of those banks to find the following information. If the information is not available on the website, students can call the bank’s customer service number to inquire:

Debit Cards

General Fees? If so, how much and how often are they paid?

Protection Against Unauthorized Purchases? Automatic Bill Pay Service? Track Activity Online or with an App? Overdraft Protection? Fee for ATM Withdrawal at Other Banks? If so, what is the fee? Liability for Lost or Stolen Cards?

List any other benefits the bank offers to debit card holders that are not included in the above chart.

Advantages/Disadvantages Bank A: Bank B:

Name ___________________________________________________________ Date______________________________________

Credit Cards Advantages/Disadvantages Bank A: Bank B: General Fees? If so, how much and how often are they paid?

Protection Against Unauthorized Purchases? Warranties on Purchases? Travel Rewards? Cash Back Rewards? Fee for Cash Advances? How much? Car rental collision insurance? Free credit score provided? Liability for lost or stolen cards? List any other benefits the bank offers to credit card holders that are not included in the above chart.

3. Based on the interview and additional research, make a list of the advantages and disadvantages of using a debit card. Then make a similar list of the advantages and disadvantages of using a credit card.

4. Write a concluding paragraph, explaining whether you would choose a debit or a credit card, based on the information you gathered. Include at least one quotation from the person you interviewed. Be sure to give attribution.

5. Write a short statement in which you explain from which of the two financial institutions you would get your debit or credit card. Be sure to give specific reasons.

A Debit Card or a Credit Card? continued

Name ___________________________________________________________ Date______________________________________

Living on a Minimum Wage There is much debate on what is a fair wage — and what is a proper minimum wage. Established by contract or by legislation, minimum wage is the lowest compensation an employee must receive for labor. Check out the facts. See if you could afford to live on the minimum wage in your community.

1. Research to find what the minimum wage is in your area. Some states have no minimum wage law and others have a minimum wage lower than the federal minimum wage. On July 1, 2015, increases to the minimum wage in D.C. and Maryland went into effect, making the minimum wage in Maryland $8.25/hour and for D.C. $10.50/ hour. D.C. was the first jurisdiction to require more than $10.00 per hour. Some jurisdictions are scheduled to change in 2016.

What is the current minimum wage where you live? $ _____________ per hour or $ _________________ for a 40-hour week (less taxes)

2. Use the apartment classifieds in the Sunday edition of The Washington Post to find the least expensive apartment for one person in your city or county (a studio or one bedroom apartment). Could an individual making minimum wage and working full time (40 hours a week) afford one of these apartments? (Taxes will be taken out of earnings.) Before you answer, think of other expenses that must be paid each month. A budget worksheet might help you. Show your work.

3. Use grocery ads from the Sunday paper or from the local grocery store online to shop for groceries for one person for a week. What would be the total grocery bill for a month? How much of the person’s monthly pay would go toward food and beverage?

4. After paying for housing and food, what other essential items must be included in a budget?

5. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2014, 1.3 million hourly workers earned the federal minimum wage. Another 1.7 million earned less than the minimum wage. Who are the workers who receive less than the federal minimum wage?

THE AVERAGE DROPOUT can expect to earn an annual income of $20,241, according to the U.S.

Census Bureau. That is a full $10,386 less than the typical high school graduate, and $36,424 less than someone with a bachelor’s degree.

-$10,386 -$36,424 $20,241