Dollars and Sense
Stay in the Black: Saving and Spending

By Jeff Potash and John Heinbokel Nathan Walker, Illustrator Creative Learning Exchange, Publisher ©2011

Dollars and Sense and the accompanying CD present a set of materials that challenge students in grades 5-7 to use Systems Thinking and computer simulations to develop a realistic understanding of personal finance. Each of the seven lessons begins with an open-ended question or challenge involving a STELLA simulation to manage different and important aspects of personal finances. The higher the lesson number, the harder the challenge.

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About the Lessons

• Lesson 1: Can I Manage My Money and My Music?
  Test different saving and spending plans to satisfy personal music needs without running out of money!
• Lesson 2: Can I Reach a Personal Saving and Spending Goal?
  Test different saving and spending plans for achieving a personal financial goal within two years.
• Lesson 3: Can I Make Money with a Lemonade Stand?
  Explore the real-world challenges of running a business.
• Lesson 4: Can I Successfully Run the Local Food Bank?
  Explore options for managing a non-profit organization whose goal is to maximize the good it does for the community.
• Lesson 5: Can I Help a Responsible Teen Buy a Car?
  Balance the trade-off decisions of working and spending to develop a plan for buying a car.
• Lesson 6: How Does Interest Grow My Savings?
  Understand the potential power of compound interest in shaping personal finances.
• Lesson 7: Can Compound Interest Make Me a Millionaire?
  Using the concepts in earlier lessons, find out how an average person can save $1 million over the course of their working lives.

• Interactive STELLA simulations associated with each lesson
• Student worksheets
• Core STELLA models for exploring or adapting further
• STELLA software (save-disabled)