IntroductionStandardsObjectivesActivitiesAssessmentResultsResources
 

INTRODUCTION
 
 
 

Subject Economics
Topic: Stock Market
Grade Level: 12
Student Lesson name and URL:Reading Stock Tables
 
 
 
 
 

STANDARDS ADDRESSED

12th grade
Economics
12.2 Students analyze the elements of America's market economy in a global setting.
        5. Understand the process by which competition among buyers and sellers determine a market price.
        8. Explain the role of profit as the incentive to entrepreneurs in a market economy.
        9. Describe the functions of financial markets.
 
 
 

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INSTRUCTIONAL OBJECTIVES
 

• After viewing a video on the stock market and hearing from a stock broker, students will be able to read and interpret financial data in the form of charts and graphs.
• After examining several models of diversified stock portfolios, students will be able to set team goals and plan a strategy.
• After brainstorming and collecting information on publicly traded companies via the internet, students will be able to discuss the merits of individual companies and use the decision-making process to arrive at  a field of five companies to invest in.
• Each student will create a spreadsheet to track the performance of the five companies selected for their team portfolio and track the value of their investment over a period of ten weeks.
• Each student will be able to communicate in writing the rationale for their team choices and anticipated outcomes.

Monday: Students will watch a video on the stock market and read in their textbooks chapters on financial markets for homework.

Tuesday: Handout examples of "How to Read the Newspaper Stock Tables" (available through LA Times) and use the overhead to practice with the students. Introduce guest speaker (stock broker) and allow students time for questions and answers.

Wednesday: Provide examples on chart paper of several diversified stock portfolios and discuss the similarities and differences among them.

Thursday: Provide an overview of how the students will access information from the internet on the library computers. Display several examples of websites that students might find useful in their search and distribute a list of preselected sites that they can visit.

Friday: Provide a model of a spreadsheet(available through LA Times) that the students will be asked to make in order to track their team selections.
 
 

STUDENT ACTIVITIES

Worksheet on interpreting stock tables.
Vocabulary assignment on terms related to financial markets.
Whole group discussion (notetaking)
Brainstorming
Collecting information from the internet.
 

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CULMINATING ACTIVITIES

Students will create a spreadsheet that lists the companies selected by their team, the number of shares purchased, and the value of each share of stock on their buy day. Each student will provide a written rationale of their team goals and strategies and what they anticipate the outcome will be at the end of tracking their portfolio in ten weeks.

ASSESSMENT

Pre and Post Test Questions: Reading Stock Tables
 
 
 

Student answers were graded on the following scale:

100-90% = A
  89-80% = B
  79-70% = C
  69-55% = D
  54-00% = F
 
 

RESULTS

(from Period 3 Economics-Fall 2001)

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RESOURCES
 

Introductory Activity

Joy of Stocks-Forbes video
Smart Investing-Consumer Reports video
 

Enabling Activities

LA Times-Ticker Tape Rally
Internet Websites: Vanguard
                         EquityTrader
                          TradeTrek
                         WallStreetJournal
                          LATimes

 Power Point Presentation
 
 

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Gardena High School
1301 West 182nd Street
Gardena Ca 90248
June Thompson   JThomp8644@aol.com
Last Revised: 07/27/2001