Teachers who attend our Summer Institute in Palo Alto become NGPF Fellows the following school year -- this Fellowship includes presenting with us at PD sessions, offering NGPF feedback on products, writing guest blog posts, ... the list goes on. Today features a Tech Tool Review from Martha Somers of Broad Run High School in Ashburn, VA. Here's what Martha has to say...

Tech Tool: Celebrity Calamity by Financial Entertainment

Cost:

Free

Use Case: 

Useful as a game at the end of the credit & banking unit.  Good thing to play on a Friday afternoon or right before a long weekend or a holiday.   The game is fairly self-explanatory and students are fairly intuitive when it comes to video games. Students learn to budget checking accounts, debit & credit card accounts, all the while living a celebrity lifestyle.  As the financial advisor, the student has to make decisions regarding minimum payment on their credit card as they continue to make purchases. They also have to keep them employed with work, as well, so that they have money to spend.

Implementation Guidance: 

I prepared two handouts and give them to students to use as they play the game. They complete 20 rounds of the game without going over their head in debt. At the conclusion of the game, they answer the reflection questions on the 2nd page. 

Pitfalls to Avoid:

Students get so involved in the game they forget to fill out the sheet as they are playing, which is how they get credit for playing. Many students enjoy this game as well as Financial Football (by Practical Money Skills). Celebrity Calamity has a happiness meter in the game and financial advisors can get fired if they don’t make their client happy. The financial advisor is in the hot seat making the financial choices for their client and attempting to avoid bank and APR increases.

Other Notes:

I used to plan this game a lot when I taught the credit unit in Intro to Business to 9th and 10th graders.  Then, after I started teaching personal finance only, I also implemented in the credit unit which I teach after the savings & banking unit.  The older students enjoy it just as much.

About the Authors

Guest Post

Jessica Endlich

When I started working at Next Gen Personal Finance, it's as though my undergraduate degree in finance, followed by ten years as an educator in an NYC public high school, suddenly all made sense.