How to Teach and Learn About the Stock Market in the Classroom

The classroom is an ideal setting to learn to trade stocks. The classroom should be equipped with a discussion and demonstration areas to begin the coursework. Next, students will research stocks within the computer and resource sections of the classroom. Finally, bulletin boards and projectors are good tools to present findings and report results. The curriculum should be customized according to the needs and set up of the class.

Teach and Learn About Stocks in Classroom Discussion Area

The discussion area is open space that shall serve as a forum to share ideas related to the importance of money management. If the discussion area is not large enough to accommodate all students, the teacher can lead the group from the front of the class, while pupils remain seated.

Open up the discussion by sharing life goals and outlining the basic costs of these achievements. The classroom should agree that stock market investment is one way to manage money and convert savings into wealth.

Students should be instructed that common stock represents ownership rights pertaining to a particular business. Share price values fluctuate according to economic factors that influence profitability. The depth of this initial discussion pertaining to the stock market mechanism varies according to the age and aptitude of the students.

Teach and Learn About Stocks in Classroom Demonstration Area

The demonstration area holds the attention of an entire class towards relevant presentations. Students use the demonstration area to identify businesses and economic sectors that they are already familiar with as possible investment opportunities. Students will typically present and feature the products of large capitalization stocks, or companies identified with food, clothing, entertainment and technology. The presenter remains within the area after the demonstration, to answer questions and receive feedback.

Teachers should set guidelines for the demonstrations - by helping students screen all products and services to ensure that they are actually offered by publicly traded companies. Teachers bracket the demonstrations by explaining that students are to receive a set amount of imaginary money to trade a portfolio of stocks. Students can assemble portfolios individually, or divide themselves up into groups by rotating seats.

Teach and Learn About Stocks in Classroom Resource Area

The resource area provides structure for students to research their current and prospective investments. Furnish the resource area with financial magazines and daily newspapers, such as the Wall Street Journal. Further, students should contact corporate investor relations departments for annual reports that may be housed within the resource area.

Students should learn to gather and organize information according to business sector, so that data may be compared intelligently. Teachers must integrate a financial glossary into the coursework to effectively define stock market terms and valuation methods. Students and groups will move between their seats, the resource area and the computer bank as they learn how to trade stocks.

Teach and Learn About Stocks in Classroom Computer Banks

Use computers for real-time information. Students should learn how to read quotes and the stock ticker from online websites. All stocks are represented by ticker symbols, and share quote information displays the current price and changes in value related to the prior trading session. The class should also recognize major stock market indexes, such as the Dow Jones Industrial Average, as comparison standards for financial performance.

Software programs and online tools allow students to set up portfolios to make "paper" trades related to their fake money through the computer. Computer time is best used during afternoons, which may coincide with the end of the regular trading session.

Teach and Learn About Stocks on Classroom Bulletin Boards and Projections

Bulletin boards and projections provide means to visually measure, update, and report results. Results can be ranked and calculated by percentage returns and size of the portfolio. Students should be encouraged to remark upon the outcome of prior investment decisions. Of course, stock market investment is a long-term proposition, and day-to-day moves are not always an ideal indicator for the success of one's analysis.

How to Teach and Learn About the Stock Market in the Classroom, Sources:

Bloomberg Market Data - Stocks, http://www.bloomberg.com/markets/stocks/movers_index_ibov.html

Classroom Layout, http://www.bsu.edu/web/cldillard1/layout.JPG

Stock Market Simulator, http://www.moneyinstructor.com/ls/msimulation.asp