Personal Finance

Class Syllabus

Instructor: Nathan Powell

Periods: 1st, 2nd, and 5thPlanning Period: 4th hour

Email:

Website:

Course Materials: Financial Peace School Curriculum – Foundations in Personal Finance: Dave Ramsey

Classroom Expectations

• RESPECT! Treat me, the materials in the room and your peers with respect. Address me as

Mr. or Coach Powell. Don’t complain about or make fun of other students.

• Be on time! When the bell rings, students should be in their seats answering the daily

question on the board, or getting their materials ready for the day.

• Enter and leave the room in an orderly fashion. Don’t run in and out of here like

crazy people.

• When the class is working in groups, arrange your desks together to make cooperation easier.

Make sure to rearrange your desks back into rows at the end of class.

• Be prepared! You should come to class with your binder, paper and a pen or pencil to

write with. Expect to use these things every day. You will not be allowed to leave for these

materials. If you forget an assignment in your locker, do not expect to leave class to get it.

You need to focus on being responsible and understanding that there are consequences when

you are not. There will be pens/pencils and paper available in the classroom for you to use.

• Raise your hands when answering a question. Do not blurt out the answer.

• No cell phone, IPod, etc. use during class. The only exception will be if they are needed to

complete an assignment.

• If you are absent from class, YOU are responsible for getting your missed work from me. I

will not chase you down or remind you multiple times. The website will also have all the

information you need.

• Academic dishonesty will not be tolerated. Anyone caught giving or receiving information

during tests, quizzes or daily assignments when working independently will receive a zero for

that test, assignment, etc.

Course Description:

Understanding and managing personal finances are key to one’s future financial success. This one-semester course is based on the Missouri Personal Finance Competencies and presents essential knowledge and skills to make informed decisions about real world financial issues. Students will learn how choices influence occupational options and future earning potential. Students will also learn to apply decision-making skills to evaluate career choices and set personal goals. The course content is designed to help the learner make wise spending, saving, and credit decisions and to make effective use of income to achieve personal financial success.

Graduates from this course will be able to:

  • Explain financial literacy and how sound financial decisions can increase a person’s standard of living and wealth.
  • Develop a career path based on rational decisionmaking, appropriate research and self-reflection.
  • Apply decisionmaking to personal financial choices (planning, maintaining and analyzing money management) throughout various stages of financial status.
  • Evaluate the sources and resources of financial systems that are available throughout various stages of financial status.
  • Evaluate sources of credit, as well as the rights and responsibilities of credit, and be able to apply a decision-making process to ensure appropriate purchases.
  • Evaluate investments and create a plan for the future.
  • Apply the rights and responsibilities of consumers to personal living and financial choices.

UNITS OF STUDY

Unit 1: Saving and Investing

• Chapter 1: Savings

• Chapter 2: Investment Options

• Chapter 3: Wealth Building and College Savings

Unit 2: Credit and Debt

• Chapter 4: Dangers of Debt

• Chapter 5: Consumer Awareness

• Chapter 6: Credit Bureaus and Collection Practices

Unit 3: Financial Responsibility and Money Management

• Chapter 7: Budgeting 101

• Chapter 8: Bargain Shopping

• Chapter 9: Relating with Money

Unit 4: Income and Careers

• Chapter 10: Career Choices and Taxes

Unit 5: Insurance and Risk Management

• Chapter 11: Ins and Outs of Insurance

• Chapter 12: Real Estate and Mortgages

What Are We Going To Do?

Each chapter is set up the same way. We will utilize videos and case studies, as well as complete research activities. The videos for each unit are broken down into 4-8 sections; each section is no more than 15 minutes in length. Students will follow along with the videos by filling in their student workbooks. Your job in this entire process is to set/establish some personal goals you wish to accomplish in the class and to come up with a plan to make them happen. To succeed, you need to take advantage of everything we do in class and observe the world around you to put the material into perspective.

After each chapter there will be a quiz over the material we covered in class, with tests following each unit. Each test will have a study guide for you to complete which will have you absolutely prepared for the test. Quizzes and tests will contain matching, multiple choice and short answer questions.

WEBSITE

The website for this class will contain EVERYTHING we do in class. If you are absent, or “misplace” an assignment, you may download and print another from the website. Unless there are serious circumstances preventing you from doing this, I will not be providing multiple copies of assignments for you. Take care of your work.

EMAIL LIST

I will use the email addresses to email important dates, test info and to let you know of any positive/negative issues in class.

Grading Scale

A95-100

A-90-94

B+87-89

B83-86

B-80-82

C+77-79

C73-76

C-70-72

D+67-69

D63-66

D-60-62

F0-59

Student ______

Parents/Guardians (Print) ______

(Sign) ______

Home/Cell phone number: ______

Email address: ______