TEEN TEACHES ELEMENTARY STUDENTS TO BE SMART WITH MONEY
Personal finance is something that ’ s very personal to
Lake Ridge High School junior Hannah Le , and she ’ s on a mission to educate kids about it at an early age .
“ My parents really emphasized the points as I was growing up , and I was pretty frugal with money ,” Le said . “ If I wanted something , I ’ d have to save up my gift money . If I needed something , I would have to give my parents a very good reason . It was instilled in me at a young age . The classes I took in high school solidified that for me .”
Le has taken several business-related classes at Ben Barber Innovation Academy – including the practicum course she ’ s in now which allows her to work as an intern at a Mansfield accounting firm . She plans to pursue finance in college , so her focus makes sense . But Le says she is concerned many of her peers don ’ t know enough about managing their money .
“ That usually leads to consequences later on : they struggle with filing taxes or spend too much and take out loans to pay the debt ,” Le said .
Le is on a personal education campaign to speak about money and budgeting to elementary students . She started by asking her former math and science teacher , Mindy Thomas , at Anna May Daulton Elementary School if she could come and talk to her class . Thomas says Le ’ s discussion with her students fits right in because recent changes at the state level require teachers to incorporate lessons about personal finance in their math classes . Thomas said her second graders – who are especially inquisitive – were ready to engage in the conversation .
“ We start with the basics like what does it mean to save money ? What is a bank account ? We focus on vocabulary words like that and then next year they ’ ll build on it . So , by the time they graduate , they have way more knowledge about financial literacy than you or I had leaving high school ,” Thomas said .
MISD also offers multiple finance-related electives in middle and high school . Students can choose from as many as eight classes that touch on budgeting , banking and economics . All students are required to take the Personal Financial Literacy and Economics course to graduate which supports the Vision 2030 guiding statement that graduates be life ready .
“ We feel strongly that our graduates should have a foundation in budgeting and personal finance before they head out into the world ,” said Jennifer Young , Associate Superintendent , Curriculum , Instruction and Accountability . “ The required high school course gives them the basics so they can successfully manage their money .”
Le is hoping that by talking to younger students , she can plant the seeds of responsible budgeting and finance
Le is hoping that by talking to younger students , she can plant the seeds of responsible budgeting and finance earlier .
Hannah Le , sitting in the bottom row centered , poses for a photo with Mindy Thomas ’ second-grade class at Anna May Daulton Elementary School .
earlier . Her passion for giving back and mentoring younger students is an example of life readiness set out by Vision 2030 . Le is hoping she might even inspire some students to follow her educational career path . Her dream college is the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas , and she ’ s creating a firm foundation for that plan .
In addition to maintaining excellent grades , Hannah founded a club at Lake Ridge High School called Leaders in Training . It ’ s a peer mentorship program focused on building relationships between upper and underclass students . She also volunteers as a mentorship coordinator with the national organization , Girls for Business .
To learn more about MISD ’ s business course options , visit the district website .
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