Teacher Resource Packet

Everything you need to know to use PersonalFinanceLab in your classroom!

In this packet, you will learn how to successfully integrate our interactive games and lessons into your other learning materials. You will learn more about the Budget and Stock Games, how long it takes to play, how to evaluate your students and how your students can use this in class or at home.

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The Budget Game

What is the Budget Game?

The Budget Game is an educational tool that allows students to learn about personal budgeting and financial management. In the game, students must build a budget to manage their income and expenses. They learn how to balance their monthly expenses and bills, as well as set realistic savings goals.

The game also introduces students to real-life scenarios, both planned and unexpected expenses, to show them the consequences of their financial choices. Students also learn about managing credit and building credit scores.

The game progresses through 12 “months” with various embedded pop-up lessons on financial literacy topics, like needs vs wants or writing a check.

Class rankings allow students to compare their net worth, credit score, and overall score with their classmates.

How long does it take to play?

It takes about 20 minutes to complete one virtual month in the Budget Game.

The progress of the game is saved as students play, allowing them to easily return to where they left off later.

For more information about the Budget Game, please go to the Budget Game Teacher Packet.

The Stock Game

What is the Stock Game?

The Stock Game is an educational tool where students get experience investing in the stock market in a simulated environment. It provides real-time pricing and portfolio updates, allowing students to experience the ups and downs of the business and economic cycles.

Students can build and manage a virtual portfolio of stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and other securities. They can conduct thorough investing research using integrated tools and resources available onsite. Testing out different strategies and making mistakes before using real money!

The live rankings enhance the learning experience as students can compare the performance of their portfolio to the other students in their session.

How do students get started?

Basic Research and Comparing Stocks is a 12-minute interactive activity where we walk through conducting basic research on a company your students may want to invest in.

Through this activity they will learn how to compare it against another company in the same sector to determine which would be a better choice to add to their portfolio for their first trades.

We also recommend checking out the Stock Game Tutorial videos. They are a great introduction to the onsite research tools, order types, and the basics of investing.

For more information about the Stock Game, please go to the Stock Game Teacher Packet.

Student Guide

To help your students make the most of PersonalFinanceLab, we’ve created the Student Guide.

We cover the following topics:

  1. Getting Started
    • Create Your Account
    • Welcome Tour
    • Disclaimer
    • How to Play the Stock Game
    • How to Play the Budget Game
    • Financial Literacy Pre-Test
  2. Your Assignments
    • Accessing Assignment Page
    • Lessons
    • Lesson Summary
    • Assignment Progress
  3. Site Navigation
  4. Need Help?

Please share this link with your class: https://www.personalfinancelab.com/administrator/student-guide/

Lesson Plans

Each Lesson Plan is a downloadable PDF that includes: key concepts and definitions, discussion questions, worksheets, as well as individual, group and class activities that you can assign your students from our learning library or from free external educational resources.

Introduction to Investing

In this lesson students will learn about various ways to invest. They will be learning about different types of investments such as stocks, mutual funds and bonds. Students will be assessing different risk that comes with each type of investment and determining when it is a good idea to invest.

Buying Your First Stock

This lesson is an introduction to buying a stock. Students will be introduced to basic vocabulary that is involved with a buying and owning a stock. Students will be going through the entire process of buying a stock from looking up the stocks ticker symbol to buying a stock on the market.

Opportunity Cost

This lesson introduces the concept of opportunity cost in the eyes of both the consumer and the producer. Students will walk away from the lesson thinking about the opportunity cost that comes with each decision that they make.

Needs and Wants

This lesson plan in an introduction to “Needs” and “Wants”, and how we use that distinction to make decisions throughout the day. The class activities also start to bridge the gap between the basic concepts, up through integrating concepts of money, and the foundations of budgeting.

Budget and Spending Plans

In this lesson students will be learning about both budgets and spending plans. They will be able to tell what the different parts of each are and when to use either. They will be looking at other peoples’ budgets and saving plans to evaluate how to create one.

Comparison Shopping

This lesson plan will introduce students to the concept of comparison shopping. There are a variety of activities that all center around comparing different items in order to get the best value for your money.

Credit Cards

In this lesson students will learn about the basics of what a credit card is and the different responsibilities that come with owning a credit card. Students will learn about what both a credit report and credit score are and the impact they have on someone’s finances.

Owning a Car

In this lesson students will be learning about the different costs that come with buying and owning a car. This lesson is important because there are many costs that students do not think come with owning a care and it is important to take them all into consideration before owning a car.

What’s After Graduation?

In this lesson students will be learning about the different options that they have after graduating high school. They will be looking at different careers and learning about what skills and level of education is required to be successful in those careers.

Taxation

In this lesson students will be learning about income tax and why certain states have an income tax. Students will be learning about taxes from the start to finish, from filling out tax forms to calculating what percentage will be taken out of their income.

Sales Tax, Tips and Discounts

In this lesson students will learn what sales tax, discounts and tips are. These are important things for students to know and learn because they will be interacting with these terms in their everyday life. Students will walk away being able to calculate all of these terms in a variety of situations.

Balancing a Checkbook

In this lesson students will be learning all about checking and how to track their purchases. Throughout the different activities students will be interacting with checks and connecting that back to budgeting and spending.

Avoiding Scams

In this lesson students will be learning about different types of scams that could happen over the phone or on the computer. They will be able to identify when they find a scam and will learn the importance of not falling into the scam.

Customer & Technical Support

Please contact our Helpdesk if you need any further assistance.

support@personalfinancelab.com
1-514-871-2222
Live Chat 9AM to 5PM EST