OSU Extension program for eighth-graders an eye opener
Imagine yourself as a teenager, learning the ropes of a middle school, relationships, and even discovering more about you. Now imagine having to imagine you’re 25. Priorities now shift with the thought of student loans, monthly budgeting, marriage and children. A big eye-opener, this is exactly what the Holmes County OSU Extension office, combined with efforts of the Holmes County Education Foundation, attempts each year with all Holmes County eighth-graders. Called Real Money. Real World., this statewide OSU Extension curriculum simulates real-life experiences to help make youth aware of the money management skills necessary to navigate through life, while also making them aware of the correlation between educational attainment and earning power.
The program begins with eighth-graders assuming the role of 25-year-old adults who are the sole income provider for a family. They receive an occupation, monthly salary and the number of children they are raising. Students learn to subtract savings, taxes and health insurance amounts from their income. The amount of money left over is what they are able to spend during the simulation activity.
The simulation involves community volunteers who represent actual businesses in the community; these volunteers set up and staff booths representing real-life businesses. By visiting the appropriate booths, students spend their salaries on items typically found in a monthly budget including housing, utilities, groceries, insurance, child care and transportation.
All Holmes County eighth-grade students, both from West Holmes and from Hiland, participate in this program, which has been going strong since 2003. “For many students, this is a wake up call from the real world,” said Kate Shumaker, county OSU director and Extension Educator. “Just realizing that they don’t get to take home 100 percent of what they earn is an eye-opener. Most of the students take the simulation seriously,” she stated. “We’ve seen kids who have randomly pulled the hardest possible combination of a low-paying job and multiple young children make the tough choices of second jobs, bare minimum of everything, and still have to barter with some of our business volunteers for services—just to make ends meet in the simulation.”
Mary Myrick, language arts teacher at Hiland Middle School, works with Shumaker the week prior to the simulation with in-class preparation. “One of the biggest impacts I think the Real Money. Real World. program has on my students is making them aware of how expensive basic life necessities really are,” Myrick stated. “They come to appreciate their parents more and seem to re-evaluate their wants versus their needs. They always comment on how expensive taxes and children are, too, and realize the connection between education and potential earnings.”
Paula Aurand, of Killbuck Savings Bank, has served at the child care booth since the program’s inception. Through the years, Aurand has noted the eighth-graders’ response to the costs attached to caring for children, as well as the sudden expenses incurred in life. “Not only do the students learn about the cost of homes, cars, and other monthly obligations, but they also come upon unexpected costs that arise for all of us-- such as a flat tire, medical bills, and home repairs-- that have the potential to throw a person off budget.”`
Throughout the activity, students keep track of their finances and attempt to complete the simulation with a positive balance. If they do, they receive a Payday candy bar; if they have a zero or negative balance, they receive a Zero candy bar (candy bars are generously donated by Rodhe’s IGA SuperCenter). During the post-simulation lesson, students reflect on their experience and what they learned by completing a self-assessment. “We wonder what impact Real Money. Real World. is making on the students,” stated Anna Patton, of the Holmes County Education Foundation, “and then I read their responses to the program. Students have reported saying, ‘I am going to thank my mom more for what I have and I will plan on saving my money more for the future. I will also...wait until I am financially ready for kids; and I plan to get into a good college so that I can get a good job...I learned that the job you have definitely affects how much money you make.’ I am assured that these concepts that will meet students head-on in the future are growing within them now. This is a valuable simulation for our community.”
The program begins with eighth-graders assuming the role of 25-year-old adults who are the sole income provider for a family. They receive an occupation, monthly salary and the number of children they are raising. Students learn to subtract savings, taxes and health insurance amounts from their income. The amount of money left over is what they are able to spend during the simulation activity.
The simulation involves community volunteers who represent actual businesses in the community; these volunteers set up and staff booths representing real-life businesses. By visiting the appropriate booths, students spend their salaries on items typically found in a monthly budget including housing, utilities, groceries, insurance, child care and transportation.
All Holmes County eighth-grade students, both from West Holmes and from Hiland, participate in this program, which has been going strong since 2003. “For many students, this is a wake up call from the real world,” said Kate Shumaker, county OSU director and Extension Educator. “Just realizing that they don’t get to take home 100 percent of what they earn is an eye-opener. Most of the students take the simulation seriously,” she stated. “We’ve seen kids who have randomly pulled the hardest possible combination of a low-paying job and multiple young children make the tough choices of second jobs, bare minimum of everything, and still have to barter with some of our business volunteers for services—just to make ends meet in the simulation.”
Mary Myrick, language arts teacher at Hiland Middle School, works with Shumaker the week prior to the simulation with in-class preparation. “One of the biggest impacts I think the Real Money. Real World. program has on my students is making them aware of how expensive basic life necessities really are,” Myrick stated. “They come to appreciate their parents more and seem to re-evaluate their wants versus their needs. They always comment on how expensive taxes and children are, too, and realize the connection between education and potential earnings.”
Paula Aurand, of Killbuck Savings Bank, has served at the child care booth since the program’s inception. Through the years, Aurand has noted the eighth-graders’ response to the costs attached to caring for children, as well as the sudden expenses incurred in life. “Not only do the students learn about the cost of homes, cars, and other monthly obligations, but they also come upon unexpected costs that arise for all of us-- such as a flat tire, medical bills, and home repairs-- that have the potential to throw a person off budget.”`
Throughout the activity, students keep track of their finances and attempt to complete the simulation with a positive balance. If they do, they receive a Payday candy bar; if they have a zero or negative balance, they receive a Zero candy bar (candy bars are generously donated by Rodhe’s IGA SuperCenter). During the post-simulation lesson, students reflect on their experience and what they learned by completing a self-assessment. “We wonder what impact Real Money. Real World. is making on the students,” stated Anna Patton, of the Holmes County Education Foundation, “and then I read their responses to the program. Students have reported saying, ‘I am going to thank my mom more for what I have and I will plan on saving my money more for the future. I will also...wait until I am financially ready for kids; and I plan to get into a good college so that I can get a good job...I learned that the job you have definitely affects how much money you make.’ I am assured that these concepts that will meet students head-on in the future are growing within them now. This is a valuable simulation for our community.”
Published: November 19, 2011
