Project Overview
$kills To Pay The Bills!
What is a budget? How can a budget help me balance my needs and wants? What are the main components of a typical monthly budget? How can a successful budget help me build my savings and lead a healthy financial life?
Competencies
Level 3:
J.105, J.106, K.109, L.113, N.117 N.118, Q.129, Q.130, R.131, R.132, R.133, R.134
Project Summary
Students will learn first hand how to make and balance a monthly budget from income to expenses including taxes, student loans, housing, food, transportation and discretionary expenses. This activity will force students to face the real life challenge of balancing needs vs. wants.
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This activity will give students a realistic idea of the current costs of common goods and services including rent, utilities, transportation costs, and food.
This activity will give students a sense of if their planned job/career earns enough money right out of school to support the lifestyle they hope to have - some students will realize that they might need a second job or roommates just to make their budgets balance!
Making It Your Own
What adjustments did you make? How did you assess student learning? What worked really well?
Public Product
Individual: Each student will create a public product (video, poster, slideshow or book) to display their knowledge of budgeting, their final budget project and a reflection of the project. These public products can be displayed in any way that works for the specialist/school partners. Some ideas include: open house, I&I or other formal ceremony, parent night, school website, parent/teacher conferences etc…