Discover more NGPF favorites beyond our math page. These 10 activities aren’t part of our Financial Algebra course, but they make great additions!

Five Activities to Energize Your Classroom

1. INTERACTIVE: Money Magic
   In this arcade game, students help Enzo manage his budget, reach his savings goal, and make it to Vegas.
2. MOVE: Your Account Balance
   Get moving! Students take a step forward or back to illustrate how different transactions will impact their checking account balance.
3. PLAY: The Bean Game
   In this simplified budgeting game, students allocate beans to represent financial decisions.
4. PLAY: Dollar Auction
   It’s competition time! Students bid to win a $20 bill and learn how cognitive biases impact decision-making. 
5. PROJECT: 5 Stocks on Your Birthday
   Students try their hand at picking stocks, and then track their stocks’ historical prices.

Five Activities To Tie In the Math

1. MOVE: Paycheck Scavenger Hunt
   This scavenger hunt includes lots of practice with percentages and calculations based on both word problems and paychecks.
2. PROJECT: Joining the Market
   This activity includes unit price and basic calculations. You could tie in percent growth and return on investment.
3. ANALYZE: Overdraft Fees
   Students walk through an example scenario and calculate overdraft fees. You could add an extension on writing linear equations.
4. CASE STUDY: How Do I Budget?
   Students complete a simplified budget including basic calculations and finding percents, then making budgeting recommendations.
5. ANALYZE: Understanding Amortization
   This activity uses an amortization schedule. You could tie in working with percentages, recursive sequences, or graphing.

About the Author

Kathryn Dawson

Kathryn (she/her) is excited to join the NGPF team after 9 years of experience in education as a mentor, tutor, and special education teacher. She is a graduate of Cornell University with a degree in policy analysis and management and has a master's degree in education from Brooklyn College. Kathryn is looking forward to bringing her passion for accessibility and educational justice into curriculum design at NGPF. During her free time, Kathryn loves embarking on cooking projects, walking around her Seattle neighborhood with her partner and dog, or lounging in a hammock with a book.