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Money Skills This is the Consumer Education Grade on the Student Portal
Consumer Ed is required for graduation!
How to Begin the Course
• Go to www.moneyskill.org and Click on the link “Students Login”
• A login screen will pop up for you to enter your username and password. Your username
and password are both your id number followed by one zero.
Once you enter your login and password in the appropriate boxes, you can click on the blue login box which will take you to your individual home page. Your home page has a list of the modules you will need to complete.
So if your id number is 1111111 your userid and password are both 11111110
You must complete the pre-test first!
• Complete the modules in the order presented by clicking launch next to the module. Each
module will take you about 40 minutes to complete.
• The closed red lock in the status column indicates that the module has not been accessed
or completed; the unlocked green lock indicates that the module has been completed and
retake indicates that Ms. Ward has approved your retaking the module. Remember,
your must always logout when exiting the course.
• There is a real-life simulation that will help you to take a quick trip through the rest of your
life. It is located at the end of the course.
• If you see the word Retake beside a module that you have completed, this is an indication
that Ms. Ward has authorized you to retake that module. When you retake a module the
score you receive will replace your previous score.
Important notes:
Listen carefully to the audio portion.
You can re-take the tests.
You can work together on the tests.
If you answer every question you will get participation points.
Module 1: Earned Income and Skill Demand
• The difference between “earned income” and “unearned income.”
• Why people with more education tend to earn more money.
• How the demand for certain skills helps determine the amount you will be paid.
• Why a shortage of people with needed skills will push salaries up.
Module 2: The Consumer Life Cycle
• Why most families go through the same life cycle stages.
• How life cycle stages relate to periods of financial stress on the family.
• How these life cycle stages have been impacted by changes to the traditional family that have
happened in the last 25 years.
Module 3: Withholdings and Deductions from Pay
• Progressive taxes
• Taxable income
• Deductions
• State and local income taxes
• Social security taxes
• Deductions for health insurance
Module 4: Tracking Expenses and Budgeting
• How to keep track of our expenses with an expense statement.
• How to put together an income statement.
• How to put together a budget.
• How to stay on track with our budget.
Module 5: Paying for What We Buy
• The advantages and disadvantages of paying with cash.
• The benefits and drawbacks of writing checks.
• The advantages and disadvantages of using credit cards.
• Using debit cards to pay for purchases.
• How to pay for purchases by using a bank bill payment system.
Module 6: Using a Checking Account
• Why a checking account is called a “demand deposit” account.
• How we can bounce a check and what happens when we do so.
• How to write a check so that we won’t be ripped off.
• How to endorse a check that we receive.
• How to keep track of checks, ATM withdrawals, deposits and service charges.
• How to fill out a check registry.
• How to balance a checkbook.
Module 7: Renting a Home versus Owning a Home
• The proportion of total expenses taken up by housing for all people and those under the age
of 25.
• Factors to consider when deciding whether to rent or buy
• The advantages of renting a home, particularly for younger adults.
• The expenses of renting, other than paying the monthly rent payment.
• How and why people finance their homes with a mortgage.
• Property tax that is paid on homes.
• Other costs of owning a home, including maintenance and repairs, insurance and utilities.
Module 8: Expenses for Food and Clothing
• Why the cost of food depends a lot on the level of preparation.
• The tradeoff between the value of our time and the cost of prepared food, and
• How clothing costs differ depending on our age, climate and gender.
Module 9: Buying or Leasing a Vehicle
• Why Americans are so dependent on their vehicles.
• The difference between the fixed costs of a vehicle and its variable or operating costs.
• The major differences between buying and leasing a vehicle.
• The cost of liability insurance.
• Factors that can increase or decrease the cost of insurance.
• The cost of repairs and the use of warranties, and
• The total cost of owning and operating a vehicle.
Module 10: Saving
• Who saves in America and just how little we save.
• The difference between short- and long-term savings goals.
• The importance of saving money to handle emergencies when they arise.
• Why people save money, rather than borrow it, to buy expensive items.
• The ways people save, including regular voluntary saving, consumption saving and forced
saving.
Module 11: Credit Cards
• How they work as a type of open-end credit that has a credit line.
• How credit cards are useful in making transactions.
• How credit cards are used to pay for purchases over time.
Module 12: Your Credit Rating
• The importance of your credit report.
• What’s in your credit report.
• How to establish a good credit record, beginning when you’re young.
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