Although most middle school and junior high students do not hold full-time jobs, many of them have money to spend, often from an allowance or a part-time job. As a group, they have discretionary income that totals, by some estimates, billions of dollars a year. Yet, while teens tend to be prolific consumers, most do not have a plan, or budget, for sensible spending and saving. This lesson challenges students to create a reasonable spending plan based on an appropriate allocation of income in a number of categories, such as clothing, entertainment, and food.
Concepts
- Budget
- Cost
- Expenses
- Fixed Expenses
- Income
- Opportunity Cost
- Periodic Expense
- Periodic Income
- Trade
- Trade-off
Standards in Economics and Personal Finance
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