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CHECKING ACCOUNT MATH

Overview

Learning the basics about a checking account and how to maintain one can help children learn that a checking account provides a method of payment of money for the goods and services that we need. This lesson gives students experience with opening a checking account, making deposits of money into a checking account, and writing checks to pay for purchases.  This lesson also provides practice in the basic math skills of addition and subtraction using a checking account transaction record.

Subject areas: Math, Social Science (Economics)

Grade range: 3 - 6

Normal duration: 20 min for small groups, longer for larger class.  Activities may be split up over two or more days if necessary. Data for Graphing activities are accumulated over a longer period, such a month.

Learning objectives

1. Students will identify a signature card.
2. Students will identify a check.
3. Students will identify a deposit slip.
4. Students will identify a transaction register.
5. Students will demonstrate the ability to fill out a signature card.
6. Students will demonstrate the ability to fill out a deposit slip.
7. Students will demonstrate the ability to write a check in order to make a purchase.
8. Students will demonstrate the ability to fill out a transaction record, adding deposits, and subtracting checks to calculate a new balance.
9. Students will be able to explain that transaction money is money used to make purchases and pay bills, and may be in the form of currency and coins, or in the form of checks written on a bank account.

Materials Used

Forms for signature card, deposit slips, checks and transaction record.  Scrip money to be used for initial deposit.  Items for the students to purchase using their checking account.

Activities

1. Teacher explains that transaction money is money used to make purchases and to pay bills.  Transaction money includes both currency and checking accounts. Money in checking accounts makes up about half of all transaction money in use.
2. Teacher explains the importance of keeping an accurate transaction register so that the students will always know how much money they have in their checking account, where the money came from and what the money was spent on.
3. Teacher provides students with scrip money to be used for depositing in the students' checking accounts.
4. The teacher asks the students to show them an ID, prior to opening an account.
5. Students will fill out a signature card.
6. Students will fill out a deposit slip with the amount to open their checking account.
7. Students will enter the amount of their deposit on the their transaction register, and show that amount as the initial balance.
8. Students will make a purchase by writing a check and entering the item on the transaction register.
9. Students will subtract the check amount from the initial balance and calculate a new balance.
10. Students will make additional deposits, enter the deposit amount on the transaction register, and calculate a new balance.
11. Students will make additional purchases by writing a check and entering the item on the transaction register.
12. Students will subtract the check amount from the initial balance and calculate a new balance.
13. Teacher will review the students' work, point out areas for improvement and/or congratulate them for a job well done.

Activity variations

1. In the first lesson, open the account, make the first deposit, and make a purchase using a check.  Update the Transaction Register and calculate the account balance at each step.  In the next lesson, the students will want to purchase an item costing more than is in the account.  Make a deposit to the account, then write a check for the purchase.  Keep an accurate Transaction Register.
2. Instead of using cash money for the deposit, the teacher writes a check out payable to the student.  The student endorses the check on the back, then uses that check to make a deposit.

Graphing activities

Displaying financial data using graphs is very common in the business world because it helps people understand the information and motivates them to take action when they see the data in a graph form.  To demonstrate graphing, the teacher will direct students to create specific transactions over a period of time, such as a month.  Transactions will include deposits and checks for a variety of transactions that the teacher and students create.  The Transaction Register is then used as information for pie charts on an Excel Spreadsheet.

Evaluation

The teacher observes, answers student questions, helps students as needed during activities, and reviews accuracy and clarity of student work.  For follow-up the teacher will periodically provide exercises involving depositing money, writing checks, and maintaining the transaction register.

Jim Hetherman is a member of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. You may send comments about this article to Jim@Burbank.com. Please include the phrase BURBANK CHECKING ACCOUNT MATH in the subject of your email.

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