Finding a realistic paystub, W-2, or credit report for an activity can take a lot of searching, and every student ends up with the same copy. The Template Builder lets you make your own, with a different version for each student if you want one.

It's the second interactive in our weekly series, following last week's Compound Growth Time Machine. All six of NGPF's new interactives are in beta, but they're ready to use now and aren't going away. Your feedback will help decide which kinds NGPF builds next.

Ideas for Your Classroom

Choose from five templates: paystub, W-2, bank statement, bill, and credit report. Generate random examples or enter your own numbers, then print or save a PDF. A few ways to use it:

• Give each group a different paystub or W-2 and have them compare what they find.
• Create a credit report for a fictional borrower and ask students what's helping or hurting the score.
• Make a fresh bank statement or bill for each class period so answers don't carry over.

It also works well alongside these NGPF activities, as extra practice or a different version for each student:

• Paystubs: FINE PRINT: Pay Stub and MOVE: Paycheck Scavenger Hunt
• W-2s: FINE PRINT: W-2 Form, CALCULATE: Completing a 1040, and CALCULATE: The Math Behind Your Federal Taxes
• Bank statements: FINE PRINT: Checking Account Statement and CALCULATE: Reconcile Your Checkbook
• Bills: FINE PRINT: Electricity Bill
• Credit reports: FINE PRINT: Credit Report

Tell Us What You Think

Sign in to your NGPF Teacher Account, make a document the way you would for class, and rate the tool from 1 to 10 in the box in the bottom-right corner. In your comment, we'd especially like to know:

• Which documents you would add
• How realistic the documents should be for your students
• Anything that slowed you down

Try the Template Builder and leave a rating. Thank you for helping us decide what to build next.

About the Author

Dave Martin

Dave joins NGPF with 15 years of teaching experience in math and computer science. After joining the New York City Teaching Fellows program and earning a Master's degree in Education from Pace University, his teaching career has taken him to New York, New Jersey and a summer in the north of Ghana. Dave firmly believes that financial literacy is vital to creating well-rounded students that are prepared for a complex and highly competitive world. During what free time two young daughters will allow, Dave enjoys video games, Dungeons & Dragons, cooking, gardening, and taking naps.

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