Lesson 9
Fun Money
Learning Intention: Reflect on your hobbies, interests, and what you enjoy to budget your "fun money."
Success Criteria
10. I can budget for additional bills.
Do Now
Complete the Spending Scenario Questions (page 24).
Learning Tasks
Answer the questions on page 25 to think about what hobbies, interests and how you like to spend your time.
Then, estimate the costs of those things. For example...
Gym membership - $20/week
Basketball replacement, once every 2 years, ball is about $50 - $50/2 years
Getting takeaways - $100/month
Next, convert that into the same unit, per week.
Gym - $20/week
Basketball - $0.48/week ($50/2 years/52 weeks in a year)
Takeaways - $25/week ($100/4 weeks in a month)
Total = $45.48/week
Add that value to your budget under "fun money" on page 36.
Tidy up your "My Budget" (pages 35-36). Make sure to convert everything so you can see your spending by the year, month, and week. Remember, this budget is how Ms Garlick is going to determine your grade for Futures and Finance. Below is the list of things that should be completed in your budget and where to find the numbers. If you missed a lesson, I have provided example numbers that you can use instead.
Income - Lesson 3 or use gross $55,948 (beginning teacher salary) with a tax of $9,804, thus $46,144 net.
Travel Costs - Lesson 5 or use $22.25/week
Rent - Lesson 6 or use $300/week
Power - $2287/year (exclude this number if power is included in your rent)
Internet - $80/month if living individually or if you have flatmates, divide between the number of flatmates
Water - $1224/year (exclude this number if water is included in your rent)
Cell Phone - Google your current provided and find a plan that works or use $25/month
Groceries - Lesson 7 or use $130/week
"Fun Money" - Lesson 8 or use $80/week
Extension - Mahi Choice: If you finish early, here are some things to work on...
Research ways you can save on your "fun money" expenses. Where can you get deals on the things you enjoy? Some examples include First Table, Food Print or Wonky Box.
Research ways to your hobby into income. Is there a way to turn your hobby into a side hustle?
Explore Instagram Accounts that five financial advice: @francescooknz, @the.hiddenfigures, @whanauwhutures, @your.richbff, @lowwhaley, @erikankullberg, @ecommjess
Teacher Instructions
If there is extra time in the teaching schedule, you can always expand and do a lesson on clever ways to save on your "fun money" like talking about First Table, Foodprint, or looking at fast food apps to see if there's a day that they have a special deal or more cost effective way to but takeaways.
Another possible lesson can be all about side hustles and thinking about ways they can make some extra money, such s selling their old clothes on TradeMe or using a company like Recycle Boutique or Tatty's to save time in that process. Again, provides a good chance to unpack how to price the items and what the time costs are to running the side hustle and if it's worth it for them.
If students are struggling with this lesson, I suggest using the "Spending Decisions Scenarios" worksheet as it's a bit more scaffolded or if you want to use that as a starter activity before they start budgeting for their "fun money." I haven't had a chance to trail this lesson, but knowing students, they could take a whole period researching the the costs of things that interest them. I mean, it gives them an excuse to "shop."
Again, feel free to change the Weekly Check In Do Now, an easy thing to do is one of the Spending Decision Scenarios.