Week Nineteen - End of Our Class :(

This Semester:

It's been a really fun semester and I'm really sad that this is the last time I'll have this group of students before they graduate. Students have learned about the basics of micro and macroeconomics, traveled to the Wright State College of Business, created personalized budgets, planned their dream vacation, and interviewed local people about our economy. Most upsettingly, this is the first group ever where everyone beat me in the Stock Market Simulation! That one will hurt for a while.

Students met Dean Li of the College of Business!

We wore some cool outfits on Halloween...

And I got crushed on the OH Stock Market Challenge... congratulations to all!

Upcoming Semester: 

Obviously I won't have these students anymore, but I did want to encourage you to subscribe to our DRSS Local Economics Podcast Project on iTunes. I'll be releasing the podcasts on a regular basis over the next few weeks, so I would love to continue building the audience for this project with each successive group of students. Please check it out on iTunes, subscribe, and 'Like' us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/DRSSPodcastProject.

If you have any questions about grades or the class, please don't hesitate to reach out to me at arch.grieve@wright.edu.

Have a great break!

~Mr. Grieve

Week Eighteen - Almost Done!

This Week

Today, student podcasts are due! Students have been working hard on these for three weeks now and many interviews have taken place. Some students who have asked for an extension have been granted it, but only for circumstances outside their control. All other students should have their podcasts submitted by the end of class today.

Upcoming Week

Due to the fact that I've lost the stock market simulation (largely thanks to some bad investments in two energy sector ETFs early on in the simulation, one of which tanked over 30%), it looks like I will be buying donuts for the entire class next week, all of whom beat me! If nothing else, hopefully I've taught the students the "risk-reward relationship," which states that "with high risk comes the opportunity for high reward, (and a higher risk of loss)."

Barring a last-minute rally for energy sector stocks, my current -6.75% loss is unlikely to change enough to beat any of the teams, even those who ended up negative. Still, it's been a good experience! There are over 500 participants and currently the winner is up over 30%, so it's a tough competition!

Next week students stock market simulation essays and stock market tracker sheets will be due, so those will need to be turned in by Monday. I'm undecided as of yet whether we will have a final exam, but much of it will depend on how long it takes (and the quality level) of the podcasts that we will be listening to next week. If students demonstrate mastery of the economic concepts I'm looking for through their podcasts, there is a chance I may have an alternative (easier) assignment for the final day. Otherwise, look for the exam to take place on Thursday or Friday of next week.

Have a great weekend, and look for the podcasts to be posted starting next week!

~Mr. Grieve

Week Seventeen

This Week

My apologies for missing the last update for the two-day week we had, but time has flown by! This week students are working hard on their final project, which is the Local Podcast Project. Students have one more week to work on this project, and it is going to be a tough deadline to meet, so please encourage your son or daughter to do whatever they need to do over the weekend and for homework to get this assignment done by the due date next Friday!

Also, today students took a pop quiz... be sure to ask them about it. It was only one question, and it's probably the most valuable lesson they will learn during the class!

Upcoming Week

This upcoming week is also the last week for the Stock Market Simulation and it looks like I may be buying donuts for everyone after some of my investments took a nosedive! Below are the scores for the teams. Unfortunately my overall return on investment right now is -2.17%!

Everyone but Team 4 is beating me!

Sadly, the semester is rapidly drawing to a close. Be sure students are checking ProgressBook to see where their grades stand going into the final quarter. Also, there is a final (cumulative) exam, so students should start reviewing their notes now (as well as previous tests) to refresh their content knowledge.

Have a great weekend!

~Mr. Grieve

Week Fourteen

This Week

This week is our last in our study of macroeconomics. Students covered unemployment, types of money, and looked at different sectors of the economy.

Upcoming Week

Next week is an important one as students take their final unit quiz on macroeconomics. Mr. Grieve gave them a review sheet today to take home and study this weekend, and next Monday we will have an entire day for review of the material we've covered thus far by playing Jeopardy! Then, on Tuesday, students will take the test.

After the test students will begin our final project, which will take us nearly to the end of the year, although there will be a comprehensive final exam the last week of the quarter. Please check out the DRSS Local Economics Podcast Project Facebook page for more information on what they'll be doing for the final weeks. Again, if you can help us with our interviews, please fill out this form.

As an aside, we are one month out from the end of the stock market simulation and the breakdown as of 9:30 this morning was as follows:

Mr. Grieve is up 4.14% overall, the rest are displayed here:

Any teams who finish with an overall higher score than me at the end of the simulation get donuts!

Have a great weekend!

~Mr. Grieve

Week Thirteen - Macroeconomics

This week

We finally began our last big unit this week as students began studying Macroeconomics. So far, we have talked about GDP, inflation/consumer price index, and taxes. I have also graded and entered into ProgressBook students' scores for their budgets and their budget essays. For the most part students did a great job on this and learned some valuable personal finance skills. I'd encourage you to talk more with them about their future career aspirations and how they want to further their own education after graduating from DRSS.

Upcoming Week

Next week students will continue our study of macroeconomics as we explore macroeconomic indicators like unemployment and balance of payments. After our third test (which will take place sometime towards the end of this week or the next week), we will conclude the content side of the class and students will finish up the year by working intensively on the DRSS Local Economics Podcast Project. Please check out the Facebook page to learn more about this project and if you or someone you know may be interested in being interviewed for it, please fill out this form.

Check us out on Facebook and on iTunes as well!

Have a great weekend, and don't forget there is a PD day for teachers next Monday, so no school for students!

~Mr. Grieve

Week Twelve

This Week

Today was the day that budgets were due! Students had until 2:15 to upload their budgets and the essays that are supposed to accompany them. I hope to have them all graded by the end of next week.

The stocks simulation is still going on and Mr. Grieve is catching up! Students should remember to fill out their weekly updates on the gains (or losses) in their portfolios each Friday. As of now I would only have to buy donuts for teams DRSS1 and DRSS6!

Upcoming Week

Next week we begin studying Macroeconomics. Students will learn about GDP, Unemployment, Inflation, Taxes, and the Federal Reserve system next week.

One more thing... Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween from the 11th Grade Econ class!

~Mr. Grieve

Week Ten

This Week

This week students continued working on their budgets. I explained to them the project, which will take approximately three weeks. Part of the project is the actual creation of the budget itself, but the other part is an essay explaining how well they have accomplished certain aspects of "good budgeting," which I have identified as accuracy, specificity, and thriftiness. I defined/explained these components to students as follows:

Accuracy - A good budget will accurately reflect current market prices for the goods/services you are researching, which means you will need to do your homework to figure out how much everything costs. For example, if you choose to purchase a 3000 sq. ft. home, your heating bill will be much more expensive than an 800 sq. ft. apartment.

Specificity - Good budgeting tries to get a realistic estimate down to the last penny, so if you simply say "movies - $14 per month" as opposed to "1 movie per month at $12.50 plus Netflix account subscription at $8.99" you will receive a 3/4 instead of a 4/4.

Thriftiness - Good budgeting helps you avoid spending too much (never pay more than you have to for something). This category is not the same as being "cheap," instead this looks at whether or not you have compared prices. You can buy a Mercedes from different dealerships, and one may cost more than the other. In this way, comparison-shopping helps you get the best deal possible, and you are still being "thrifty."

Students were also given a link to the Bureau of Labor Statistics so they could understand how much they could realistically expect to earn coming out of college. I advised that they look at the state data and take the low end of the salary range, as they will most likely earn at the low end (or below) when starting out.

Going into chemistry? This is the kind of information you can find on the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational and Employment Wage Statistics

Mr. Federinko also came today to discuss how to research which college students wish to attend so they can get an idea of how much they will owe in student debt (if any) after graduation. If you plan to help your son or daughter by paying for any of their education expenses or if they have a College Savings Plan, now is a great time to talk with them about this so that they can be as realistic as possible in how much money they will need to plan to set aside for student loan repayment.

Upcoming Week 

Next week is parent-teacher conferences. If you would like to meet and talk about your son or daughter or are concerned about your student's performance and would like to schedule a meeting, please use the pick-a-time website that the school is using for scheduling conferences. I'm always happy to meet with you if you'd like to discuss your son or daughter's performance or learn more about what goes on in the class, or would just like to walk through their grades in more depth. I also like having the students be a part of the conference as well, so please know that they are welcome to join us if you would like.

We will be continuing to budget for the next couple of weeks, and students continue to work on their stock market simulations.

Have a great weekend!

~Mr. Grieve