Lesson Title: Clickety Clack, Let's Keep Track!

Lesson Title:
Clickety Clack, Let's Keep Track!

Grade Level :
3-5

Synopsis:
This lesson will show students the importance of keeping track of their savings.

Standards:

cs1

cs10

cs11

Lesson Objectives:
Students will:

·  identify reasons for saving money.

·  discuss methods and places for saving their own money.

·  explain the importance of record-keeping when using a bank
for saving money.

Key Economic Concepts:

Banking

Economic institutions

Functions of money

Money management

Saving

Introduction:
What is money? Why do people save it? What are some things for which you have saved money?
When you save money in a bank, you are trusting the bank to take care of your money, and even earning a little if you are getting interest. This lesson will help you understand why it is important to keep track of your money when you use a bank to save.

Task:
In this lesson, students will work in pairs to simulate banking transactions on a savings account. As students compare answers and practice recording savings deposits and withdrawals, they will see the advantage of keeping track of these transactions.
Advantages include having a written record of transactions in case the bank makes an error on the record, and when students are planning for expenditures they will have a record of their account balance to assist in budgeting.

Resources:
Internet Resources:

·  KidsBank.com is a site that takes students through several tutorials on money, banking and other financial information. Use The Adventures of Dollar Bill to help students understand the basics of banking. Other activities may be completed by students as lesson extensions.

Student Materials:

·  Sample Deposit Slip

·  Sample Savings Passbook

·  Banking Cards Activity Sheet (1 set for each pair of students; cards should be separated and placed in a pile face down)

·  Printable Passbook Pages (2 sets for each pair of students)

·  Clickety Clack, Let's Keep Track online activity

Process:
Activity One:
Do you know how to save money in a bank? Visit KidsBank to learn about how a savings account works. Take the Banking Quiz to see if you understand some of the basics.
The quizzes available at KidsBank are basic multiple choice exercises. Students are told how many questions they answered correctly at the end of the quiz, but they are not given opportunities to correct their answers. You may wish to do this quiz together as a group, or create your own version in order to have both a record of student learning and an opportunity to redirect when students answer incorrectly.

Activity 2:
Practice filling in a bank deposit slip and passbook using these samples. Be sure to record deposits and withdrawals in the correct column of your passbook. If you make a deposit, add the amount in the balance column. If you are withdrawing money, subtract.
Activity Three:
Choose from the following two activities to work online or offline:

Offline Version: Work with a Partner to pretend you are making deposits and withdrawals to a savings account. Get from your teacher or print out a "savings passbook," which allows you to keep track of your money. Take turns picking "banking cards" and record the deposits or withdrawals on your passbook pages. Each of you should record all transactions. As you are recording the amounts, compare your answers with your partner to be sure you are both adding and subtracting correctly. Imagine what would happen if you didn't keep a record and the bank made a mistake. What would happen to your money?

[In this version, pass out one set of printable passbook pages to each student, along with one set of banking cards to each pair of students. Have students take turns picking banking cards. Each time a card is chosen, both students should complete their passbook entry. Students should compare answers at the end. Caution students to be patient with each other if they make mistakes. The point of the lesson is to learn about what might happen if savings customers didn't keep track of their accounts, so while students should take care to correct any mistakes they make along the way, differences between answers should be considered fodder for discussion about the lesson objectives.]
Online Version: Clickety Clack, Let's Keep Track -- Get a copy of the savings passbook pages from your teacher or print them out. Take turns solving the problems on the train cars and writing the answers in the passbook. What could happen to your money if you add or subtract incorrectly?
In this version, students move a train along a track by making correct deposits and withdrawals. One savings customer will record the transaction online, while the other will record in a savings passbook. The online version provides real-time feedback, so both students can monitor their answers. Caution students to be patient with each other if they make mistakes. The point of the lesson is to learn about what might happen if savings customers didn't keep track of their accounts, so while students should take care to correct any mistakes they make along the way, differences between answers should be considered fodder for discussion about the lesson objectives.

Learning Advice:
Included in lesson.

Conclusion:
Review the activities you completed during this lesson. What were some of the challenges of working in pairs? What was helpful about it?
Brainstorm a list of things you noticed about keeping track of savings and how that can help you manage your money. Consider some of the questions below:

·  What happened when you or your partner made a mathematical error?

·  Why would it be important to have a written record of your transactions if mistakes are made at the bank?

·  Why would it be helpful to you to know how much money you have in your savings account?

Evaluation Activity:
Observe students' behavior during the pairing activity. Students should be conversing about the advantages to having their transactions recorded. Follow-up discussion and brainstorming should indicate an understanding of the use of savings documentation. Students should be able to explain their experiences during this lesson to you and to each other.