A Checkbook Unit

For a number of years now, I have carried out a checkbook unit in my seventh grade math classroom. This year, I am in a different position at a different school and I took my unit to a high school special education classroom. This unit takes a week or two to introduce and runs for several months concurrently with other instructional units. I always enjoy doing this unit, even though it is a bit more work for me.

I designed the unit myself, trying to make it a simulation of a real-life experience. I made all the forms (checks, deposit slips, etc.) to look like the forms I get at the bank. For this reason, students and their parents sign an agreement saying they understand the checks that are issued must not be used in the real world, thus constituting fraud. I start with a unit overview telling each student how much they have in their account, how much their paycheck will be each week,and how much they will have to pay in bills each month. I then do a lesson on how to write checks and keep record of the transaction in a ledger (generously donated by a local bank.)
Then students are ready to start the business of writing and depositing checks to a box labeled with the bank name in the back of the classroom. Some of the features of my unit include:
vocabulary introduction, practice, and quiz
explanation of debit cards--then kids come to school to find out they went shopping the night before and are given the receipts and told to record it in their ledger
an explanation of income taxes--followed by a game to determine how much they pay or get back (This is usually done around April 15.)
That's Life Situations--stories that explain extra payments they must make (ie. Your cat Fluffy coughed up an abnormal sized hairball, so you took her to the vet. Make your check for $50.oo payable to County Veterinarian. )


I keep the account ledger for the bank and am able to give a total for the students to compare to their total. This can be laborious at times, but it is very helpful for the students.

This year, the checkbook system has also served as a reward/accountability system in the classroom with bonus checks given for hard work and appropriate behavior, and fines imposed for poor behavior. Food and other items can also be purchased in the classroom with this system. It was very rewarding to find out that after practicing these skills, one of my student's mother opened a checking account for him and is helping prepare for being in the real world soon. So all in all, students are getting math and life skills from this one simulation and I continue to enjoy doing it.