Junior Achievement (JA) is celebrating Financial Literacy Month by teaching students in Alberta the basics of finances in order for them to make smart decisions throughout their lives.
“Through the month of November Canadians are encouraged to invest in their financial well-being,” said JA Regional Coordinator Lindsay Pollon.
“That really means taking control of their finances, by making a budget, making sure they put aside money for their savings, and really work on reducing their debt,” said Pollon.
She said that about 500 students from the Strathmore and Chestermere area have been participating in a variety of JA Financial Literacy Month programs, including Dollars with Sense, Our Business World, A Business of our Own, Economics for Success, and an Investment Strategy program.
“Schools are really using Financial Literacy Month to introduce our programs to their students, they have been really well received,” said Pollon.
“Students in Strathmore and Chestermere will be learning how to be good money managers and make smart financial decisions right now for their future,” she said.
JA has programs that benefit elementary students.
Pollon said that these courses focus on teaching students about business, why businesses are created and why businesses exist, which gets them thinking about different products and services that they could create that would both make a profit and would serve a need.
There are also programs geared specifically for the junior high students with the focus on budgeting.
“A lot of the students will be going out and getting their first job soon, so we’re wanting to instill in them how to be good money managers from the start, and how to invest their money at an early age so that they can be good money managers in their future,” Pollon said.
One program that students will participate in is the Investment Strategy program which teaches students about different kinds of investments and how investing works.
At the end of the program students will participate in a stock simulation activity where they can buy and trade stocks in real time said Pollon.
Students can also learn about how to budget properly, how to gain independence, and how to plan appropriately in the Economic Success program.
“We had the economic downturn, we’re seeing that housing prices are going up, people aren’t able to afford to buy houses, or people are declaring bankruptcy, and this is really a prevention of measures,” said Pollon.
JA’s goal for Financial Literacy Month is to ensure that students are learning at an early age how to manage money, the importance of saving, and how to budget each month so they are not seeing high levels of debt throughout their lives.
Pollon said that this is particularly important because she knows a lot of people personally that aren’t able to afford a house or put savings away each month.
“A lot of people right now are living paycheck to paycheck.
“The schools see it as incredibly valuable to teach students at an early age how to be smart consumers, how to put money away and save for the future, rather than going and blowing it all on stuff they don’t really need right now,” Pollon said.
She added that the programs will also teach students how to shop online responsibly, how to avoid being scammed, how to prevent against impulse buys that aren’t the smartest decisions, and to really think about how they want to spend their money, and how to invest their money wisely.
“Financial Literacy Month is just really important for Canadians to take a look at their finances, make sure they are making smart financial decisions, and make sure they are being conscious to bring down their debt, put money away in savings, and invest their money properly just so they can have a successful future,” she said.
