Syllabus

Personal Finance Syllabus
Donegal High School
Mr. Hill

Personal Finance is designed to help you make wise financial decisions.  You will explore and compare savings plans and other investments, such as stocks, bonds, and mutual funds.  You will learn to set up a personal budget and hopefully adhere to it!  You will be able to do your own income taxes with ease.  Additionally, we will explore the advantages and disadvantages of credit card use.  Other topics studied include housing choices, buying cars and insurance, identity theft, and how to make SMART monetary decisions.

Course Sequence
  1. Careers  
    • Life Map
    • Education and Income
    • Factors in Career Choice
    • Career & Occupational Profile
  2. SMART Financial Goals
    • FCCLA Decision Making Model
    • Opportunity Cost
    • Types of Goals
  3. Earning A Living & Income Taxes
    • Reading a Paycheck
    • Tax Forms - W-2 v. W-4
    • Gross/Net Pay
    • Minimum Wage Laws
    • Income Tax Forms
  4. Budgeting
    • Income v. Expenses
    • Expenses - Fixed v. Variable
    • Creating A Budget
    • Family Assistance Services
  5. Banking
    • Savings v. Checking Accounts
    • Computing Interest
    • Bank Statements and Reconcilliations
    • Bank Services
    • Financial Institutions Options
    • Online Banking
  6. Credit
    • Advantages and Disadvantages
    • 3 C's of Credit
    • 20/10 Rule
    • Reading a Credit Card Statement
    • Credit Reports
    • Dangers of Credit
    • Credit Laws (Including Bankruptcy)
  7. Identity Theft
    • Types of ID Theft
    • Costs of ID Theft
  8. Investments
    • Savings v. Investing
    • Risk v. Reward
    • Investment Options
    • Retirement Plans
  9. Insurance
    • Car
    • Homeowner's/Renter's
    • Life
    • Medical
  10. Housing
    • Purchasing v. Renting
    • Costs of Buying a Home
    • Mortgage Terms
    • Landlord/Tenant Agreement

Assessment
1.  In-class assignments
2.  Class Participation
3.  Homework
4.  Quizzes
5.  Tests
6.  Projects
7.  Final - MS Office Certification

 Grading
A.    The academic grade will be determined by an evaluation of all assignments and                 
        assessments.

B.    The work ethic grade will be determined by participation, behavior, preparation, and 
        completion of assignments.

C.    Grading Scale:


A+

=

98% - 100%
A
=
93% - 97%
A-
=
90% - 92%
B+
=
87% - 89%
B
=
83% - 86%
B-
=
80% - 82%
C+
=
77% - 79%
C
=
73% - 76%
C-
=
70% - 72%
D+
=
67% - 69%
D
=
63% - 66%
F
=
Below 63%
















Work Ethic

In addition to the academic grade, a work ethics grade (indicated as Citizenship on the report card) will be issued each quarter. This grade is based on your attendance, dependability, initiative, participation, cooperation and behavior. Refer to your student handbook for descriptions of behavior and ethics warranted for each grade. The scale used for ethics is as follows:

                                    (H)       Honorable
                                    (S)       Satisfactory
                                    (N)       Needs Improvement
                                    (W)      Weak

Homework/Assignments

You will only be assigned homework occasionally due to the nature of this course. All homework and in-class assignments are expected to be completed by the due date. In the event you do not complete work fully and/or by the due date, you will receive a 10 percent reduction for each day the work is late.  After your assignment is 5 days late, it will not be accepted.

 Second Chance Assessments
In some instances, you may be motivated to request a second chance on an assessment.  Should you wish to challenge yourself to improve your learning, you may earn an opportunity to retake certain assessments.  Please understand that a Second Chance/Retake is not automatic and will require you to complete a remediation program.  You will have 1 class meeting to decide whether you would like to request a retake.  Upon receiving permission to retake an assessment, you will have 5 school days to complete the remediation program AND take your second chance assessment.  Please note that all second chance retakes will be different than the original assessment as per District guidelines.

Behavior Expectations

A. Students must have the students handbook signed by a parent/guardian to receive an account.

B. Standard Etiquette

  1. Treat equipment professionally. Strike the keyboard gently. Notify teacher or any equipment problems.
  2. Computer settings are not to be changed or altered in any way.
  3. Avoid unauthorized use of the Internet, use of games, email, instant messaging, or chatting during class.
  4. Desk areas must be clean and uncluttered.
  5. Backpacks should be kept out of the way – under desks/out of the walkway
  6. Clear work area prior to leaving the classroom
  7. IPods/Music players, food, drinks are not permitted in the classroom.
  8. If late bring a pass with you – An excess of 3 lates will result in a referral to the office.
  9. Keep movement in the room to a minimum; please be patient. Use your resources.
  10. If you are absent from class, it is your responsibility to make up the missed work. All missed assignments must be made up WITHIN 5 DAYS. If work is not completed, students will receive no credit for the assignment.
  11. Academic Dishonesty is not tolerated and will result in a zero for the assignment and a behavioral referral to the Principal or Assistant Principal for further action. Common forms of academic dishonesty include, but are not limited to, copying from another student’s test/paper, discussing test materials, utilizing notes during assessment, and plagiarism from either paper or electronic sources. Copying and pasting material from the Internet is considered Plagiarism.

Bullying

The Donegal High School faculty, staff, and administration make every effort to provide a positive and safe environment for our students. With this in mind, Donegal High School has established the policy and procedures outlined below for addressing bullying in the school community.

Bullying Defined: Bullying means any intentional written, electronic, verbal, or physical act or actions against another person that a reasonable person under the circumstances should know will have an effect of:
  • Placing a person in reasonable fear of substantial harm to his or her emotional or physical well-being or substantial damage to his or her property.
  • Creating a hostile, threatening, humiliating, or abusive educational environment due to the pervasiveness or persistence of actions due to a power differential between the bully and the target.
  • Interfering with a student having a safe school environment that is necessary to facilitate education performance, opportunities, and/or benefits.
  • Perpetuating bullying by inciting, soliciting, or coercing an individual or group to demean, dehumanize, or embarrass or cause emotional, psychological, or physical harm to another person.
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