Financial Fitness for Families

Students and their families learned how to budget, save and make choices as they played board games called "Race to Save," "Can You Buy It?" and "Piggy Bank Problems" at Community Nights held at Stubbs Elementary School on January 28 and February 24. More than 400 parents and children participated in the grade-appropriate activities that challenged the students to apply math skills learned in the classroom to develop money management skills.

The families received copies of activities to reinforce the math and financial skills at home that they practiced at the Community Nights. A grant from TD Charitable Foundation supported the family programs at Stubbs Elementary School.

Last month, 17 secondary teachers participated in a seminar that focused on how the Fed regulates the money supply to achieve three objectives - measured economic growth, full employment and price stability.  Led by Dr. Andrew Hill, economic education advisor at the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, the seminar explored the idea that although the Fed possesses powerful tools to influence the direction of the economy, it is difficult to determine with complete accuracy the timing, size and effectiveness of these tools.

To assist teachers in sharpening their students' understanding of monetary policy, Dr. Hill modeled three lessons from the Council for Economic Education's current edition of High School Economics. One of the lessons, Gigantic $100,000 Bill, is a classroom simulation that explains how the fractional reserve system increases and decreases banks' ability to lend, affecting the money supply in the economy.

On April 29, Professor James Butkiewicz, Chair of the Economics Department at the University of Delaware, will lead a seminar on economic growth followed by a related lesson from the Council for Economic Education's current edition of High School Economics. Teachers are invited to register on Eventbrite for the seminar, which will be held at the Duncan Center in Dover.