FutureFit Extension Activities
Get Real: One-Month Money-Saving Challenge
One popular way to save money is the 52-Week Money Challenge. The concept is simple – for every week of the year, put a corresponding amount of money into a savings account. For example, in Week 1, save $1.00. In Week 2, save $2.00, in Week 13 save $13.00, and so on.
Using a calendar page that has four or five Fridays (or a similar 4-week grid), ask students to calculate how much money they could save at the end of a month if they took the challenge using nickels, dimes and quarters. They can draw the coins into the calendar spaces, use manipulatives or use cutouts. If necessary, model the exercise with nickels, and then have students perform the exercise with dimes and quarters.
When students have added up their savings, reinforce the core concept of the exercise by emphasizing that saving small amounts across a long period of time adds up significantly.
As a challenge exercise, solicit suggestions of items the group would want to purchase and model how long it would take to save up the money to do so. Examples could include a popular app or game membership, a book, an article of clothing or an electronics item such as headphone or a smartphone.
Reflect: Food for Thought
As an extension to the previous activity, tally the amounts of money students have saved up to determine the total amount saved by the class. Write or project the amount on the board. Model (or solicit estimates of) the amount of money the entire class would have saved in an entire school year. Using this total yearly number, ask students to write down the names of three organizations which they think would would be appropriate to donate some or all of the money to. Encourage students to think locally, at the school, neighborhood, and community level.
