Looking for some fun ideas for your investing unit? Or just want to expose your students to some math in the real world?
The stock market can be confusing for students because it is full of new vocabulary, constant ups and downs, and real-world opportunities that they haven’t experienced yet. It’s hard to discuss investing with a group of teenagers who have barely earned their first paychecks!
Even though the stock market is a complex topic for students, it also provides a great opportunity to incorporate real-life learning and real-world math skills into your lessons. In my experience, the stock market quickly draws students in as they start to realize the role the stock market could play in their future.
Here are four fun activities to expose your students to the stock market, and will have your students begging to learn more!
Stock Market Exploration Activity
This activity will provide your students with real experience using a finance website. (My favorite to use with students is Google Finance.) They’ll look up current stock prices and learn how to interpret the information provided, including daily price changes, dividends, year-high/low prices, and more! They’ll also set up an investing plan for $1,000, which makes a great introductory activity for using a stock market simulator! You can get this activity for your classes here!
Tracking a Stock Activity
Over the course of five, seven, or ten days, your students will track the price of a single stock. This provides an eye-opening opportunity for students to see how volatile the stock market can be, as well as how daily news and events can affect the price of their stock.
They’ll also use real-world math skills as they calculate the percent change of the stock price each day, create a graph to show the price trend, and calculate their overall rate of return at the end of the tracking period. You can get this activity for your classes here!
Stock Market Bingo
I’ve never met a group of high school students who didn’t love playing games in class. For some reason, it seems like curriculum companies always forget that older kids still love to play games, too! This bingo game will help your students review and practice all the stock market concepts and real-world math skills they’ve learned. The bingo cards have a sample stock quote and formulas printed on the back for them to use as they answer the questions.
It’s also very low prep- the bingo questions are ready to go on Google Slides. You’ll just need to print the bingo cards, and you’re ready to play. You can get this bingo game for your classes here!
Real-Time Stock Market Simulators
Using a stock market simulator with your students is one of the best ways for students to get a true feeling for how the stock market operates. You can read more about how to use a stock market simulator in your classroom, and check out my list of recommended simulators here. (The best part is that they are all free!)
Need more stock market resources for your classroom?
You can check out a full bundle of easy-prep stock market resources here. The bundle includes the resources listed above (excluding the stock market simulators) plus two more lessons to make teaching about the stock market easy!
The information provided in this post does not, and is not intended to, constitute financial advice; instead, all information, content, and materials available are for general informational purposes only. Information in this resource may not constitute the most up-to-date information. This resource may contain information regarding third parties. Such information is only for the convenience of the reader. CKMath does not recommend or endorse any third party, and CKMath is not affiliated with, nor sponsored by, any third party.
