Middle Schoolers to Learn Personal Finance

The Milwaukee Public Schools are collaborating with Junior Achievement Wisconsin to teach eighth graders about personal finance. Starting in October, students will learn the basics of creating a budget in the classroom. Then they will take part in a series of role playing activities where they will set up a budget based on assigned life circumstances.

Denise Callaway coordinates business and community partnerships for the district and says that the program is an effort to bridge a gap between the classroom and the real world. “There’s a lot of concern about how well children really understand money, and particularly how well they understand their own money. So what we want to do is to make sure that children understand that how they manage their money can make a difference with what they are able to do with their lives.”

The partnership will last for the next three years.