Reality Store is a real world financial simulation for youth.
During this hands-on experience, high school students are given a hypothetical family situation with a career and family. Based on that information they make spending decisions for their household.
Reality Store is designed to:
Seven stations are set up to represent monthly budget categories:
Reality Store is designed to:
- Give youth a glimpse of their future
- Help youth become aware of the need for basic skills of financial planning, decision making, and goal setting
- Motivate youth to examine attitudes about their futures and careers
- Motivate youth to stay in school
Seven stations are set up to represent monthly budget categories:
- Housing (utilities, insurance, furniture)
- Transportation
- Groceries
- Shopping mall (communications, clothing, entertainment, etc.)
- Family Care (child care, health care)
- Career Services
- Financial Center
Job Duties for Volunteers:
- 3-hour time commitment.
- You will be assigned a station upon check-in. Each station has a folder of information explaining the topic and what your role is in advising. There are charts and graphs and all kinds of handouts to help advise the student given their life situation. Please take some time to review it before the students arrive. Should they go ‘high end’ on something and spend a lot of money if they have 3 children? What is their salary? What can they afford? What other stations do they need to visit to account for life and keep a positive balance in their checkbook? Can they save anything? Thinking of your own life experiences may help talk about the subject matter, and you’ll find it relatable to the students.
- Students are required to visit each booth. They will need to deduct the amount of the monthly expense at each booth and keep a balance in their checkbook. Initial the checkbook for the booth you are assigned to before they move on to another booth. It is possible for them not to spend money at your booth if it is not an essential expense, but you still need to sign the register.
- New volunteers are teamed with tenured volunteers. Watch them for the first few students if you like, and then join in! Ask questions! Have fun!
- At the conclusion of the event, the students return to the auditorium to discuss the activity. Volunteers can then help pack up the materials and check out of the school at the office. If you would like to stay to hear the debriefing, proceed to the auditorium after the event, then check out at the school office upon leaving.
Contact us to volunteer:
