Foundations of Personal Finance

This unit establishes core financial literacy skills students need to manage money responsibly, including budgeting, tracking expenses, saving, calculating net worth, and recognizing common consumer pitfalls. It emphasizes practical calculation methods and the use of technology to automate tracking and build emergency savings, preparing learners for deeper study of credit, investing, and risk management in subsequent units.

Learning Objectives

• Analyze personal income and spending by tracking and categorizing expenses over a simulated month to identify patterns and calculate a workable monthly budget
• Apply budgeting and savings principles to construct a balanced monthly budget, set a target emergency fund (expressed in months of expenses), and determine a personal savings rate as a percentage of income
• Demonstrate the ability to compute financial net worth by listing assets and liabilities, performing the assets-minus-liabilities calculation, and interpreting the result to inform short-term goals
• Evaluate consumer risks and common money mistakes (including predatory offers and scams) and select appropriate financial products and technology tools (e.g., savings accounts, budgeting apps) to automate tracking and protect financial well-being