Personal Finance Lab- A Review – The Delight Directed Homeschooler

Disclosure: I received this product free through the Homeschool Review Crew

My oldest is quite adamant that he needs real life experience before he is launched in a couple of years. He is particularly interested in personal finance. He sees much more value in knowing how to manage money than he does in Algebra. Through the Homeschool Review crew, we received the PersonalFinanceLab Budgeting Game, Stock Market Game and integrated curriculum from PersonalFinanceLab.com. Personal Finance Lab is a web-based experiential education teaching and learning tool designed for personal finance, economics, business, social studies, and math classes for high schools designed and built by Stock-Trak.

The Personal Finance Lab Budgeting Game, Stock Market Game and integrated curriculum is a great way to set your kids up for financial success. My older two children have recently opened their first checking accounts. My oldest is fine to just let his money sit. He doesn’t have big plans, but his sister is very much interested in saving for a car and “you know… learning how to money.” I’m so thankful for programs like this one from PersonalFinanceLab.com that exist to help me help my kids!

The program is completely web based. When I first logged on, I was a little intimidated by the screen. It can feel very overwhelming. However, there are tutorials and videos to help you navigate thr program. It is worth it to take the time to go through the tutorials.

In the budget game, your child will be given a job, salary, and bills that need to be paid. They will learn how to budget their money and how to be financially responsible by having a savings account and keeping their credit cards in check. They will learn the consequences of overspending. You can set it up for up to 18 months of living, with each month taking about 20 minutes to complete. It is set up with real-life scenarios that will benefit them when they are grown and on their own. They will learn the difference between a credit card and a debit card and when it is appropriate to use them. They will also learn about building credit. I know some adults who could benefit from such a game!

My oldest daughter (14) will probably be the one to really get into the Budget Game. She is always dreaming and scheming about how she will live with her best friends while they are in college or getting started in life. She talks about the apartment where they will live and the jobs they will have. When beginning the Budget Game, you go through a series of questions to set your budget and set the stage for your financial choices… things like what their living situation will look like (roomates?), cell plan, savings goals, and more. Your child will learn a tough lesson about how much taxes come out of their paycheck! (Remember Rachel in Friends when she got her first paycheck and kept asking who FICA is and why did they get all her money!!)

The Budget Game also throws some unextected life things at the user! Things like a break in or you use more gas than you planned or maybe you have an unexpected injury!!

Another aspect of The Personal Finance Lab Budgeting Game, Stock Market Game and integrated curriculum from PersonalFinanceLab.com is the Stock Game. You can easily switch between the two games on the dashboard. This game teaches all about the stock market using real time stocks! This is a game I really, really should do with my kids. I am clueless… I mean clueless when it comes to stocks! We didn’t really spend much time with the stock game, but we will!

I have to say that I am with my son on this one… he needs to be prepared for the real life. Adulting is hard. If I can give my kids some tools for when they are on their own, adulting with all their might… I will. PersonalFinanceLab.com opens the door for a ton of real life learning, room for research, and open ended learning. If you are looking for a web-based program to teach your kids to budget well, manage money, understand the stock market, and more… I highly recommend you look into Personal Finance Lab.