Guided by one of their own, a class of Victoria High School students quickly picked up on the difference between wants and needs during a money management presentation on Thursday.
“My Slurpee [iced soft drink] is a want,” said one teen. “A meal is a need.”
Another student piped up: “Hydro is a need. A new shirt is a want.”
Students in the planning class were being educated in financial literacy using the Dollars with Sense program offered by Junior Achievement Canada.
Coast Capital Savings Credit Union is sponsoring the in-school program for three years in B.C. at a cost of $606,000, a credit union official said.
Volunteers lead the presentation. Breyn Banks, a Grade 11 student, is employed by Coast Capital and is part of its youth team. He spoke to Vic High students, as did Coast Capital staffer Kathleen Hill.
Banks, who related how he saved and shopped for an Xbox gaming system, said “it really helps hearing [financial advice] from someone my age.”
Each student receives a Dollars with Sense workbook which has guidelines to help them understand the importance of setting goals, effective planning and making wise choices.
The bottom line is that by being prepared, youth can fulfill their dreams and be successful in life.
The program shows students how to evaluate their current spending patterns, practices and thoughts about money. They are taught how to be smart consumers, how to look after their money, set a budget and watch out for fraud.
One young woman suggested monitoring spending by recording it on a smart phone.
When asked for ways to shop sensibly, a student suggested buying products that will last. Another said to look out for good deals, while another recommended buying things that could be returned in the event of having second thoughts. Hill urged students to “sleep on it” before making a purchase.
Students can also look on the Coast Capital website to find calculators, she said. These include savings, loan, mortgage and retirement calculators.
Investment terms and options, along with a journal, are also part of the workbook.
In the past two years, Dollars with Sense has been presented in 577 classrooms in B.C. During the 2015-16 school year, it will be presented to 9,500 students in 350 programs — 60 of those on Vancouver Island, said Deborah Wakeham, Junior Achievement regional manager for the Island.
Grade 11 student Zoe Schmit said the presentation helped give her a “better understanding of how money works, how to save it, and how to budget.”
