Thirteen seniors participated in the fourth annual Financial Reality Fair held at Shalom Christian Academy on November 16, 2017. Each student chose their desired career and received a budgeting worksheet with a salary based on the entry-level salary for that career. During the fair, the students worked on their monthly budgets to decide on everything from transportation and cell phone plans to food and clothing. Before they could finalize their monthly expenses, each student took a turn to spin the Wheel of Reality. This could have benefited or worked against the students where they may spin and receive a monetary birthday gift or have to pay for a broken cell phone. The students then added up their monthly expenses to see if they were on budget. If they were on budget, they discussed how they could use their “extra” income. If they were over budget, they had to choose different lifestyle options or maybe even get a part-time job!
