Eighth graders from Baskin, Crowville, Fort Necessity and Gilbert schools in Franklin Parish experienced life in the real world recently when they participated in a program sponsored by the LSU AgCenter.
The Welcome to the Real World program is an active, hands-on, real-life simulation that gives young people the opportunity to explore career opportunities and make lifestyle and budget choices similar to those adults face on a daily basis.
In the program participants assume that they have completed basic educational requirements for a job and are single, 25 years of age, and independent with no financial support from family or others.
Before the simulation students work in the classroom to investigate potential careers and figure the monthly salary they would receive for their chosen career. They figure the tax and other deductions so they know the amount of their net income or take-home pay.
The week before the simulation local bankers teach the students about checking and savings accounts. Each student opens a sample checking and savings account and learns how to record and manage their accounts. Banks that participated in the event were Citizens Progressive Bank, Franklin State Bank, Progressive Bank and Winnsboro State Bank.
After making their deposits to their checking and savings accounts, the students are ready to continue through the Real World activity by making spending choices from the following categories: housing, transportation, insurance, utilities, entertainment, groceries and clothing.
Businesses providing information and helping students at the stations were: Wes Lowe Realty, Dennis Crain Dodge, Waller-Singer Chevrolet, White Ford, Guice Insurance Agency, Northeast Louisiana Power Cooperative, Entergy, D & N Productions, Franklin Nutrition Intervention and Research Initiative and LSU AgCenter.
After making each choice, the students had to pay by either writing a check or using their debit card. At each stop they also balanced their checkbook register.
As we all know in the real world there are those unexpected expenses and sometimes income that come along. So, to cover this concept each participant had to choose a “chance” card to see what unexpected expense or income they had to deal with.
Franklin Parish High School Beta Club members served as leaders to guide each group of ten students as they moved through the simulation. Several of the group leaders commented that they wished they had gotten the chance to go through this before high school.
Comments from participants ranged from, “It was really fun!” to “I realized it is going to be more difficult than I thought. Your money goes faster than you think.”
| | Waller-Singer Chevrolet and White Ford representatives explained transportation options to students. |
| | Information on housing options was supplied by Wes Lowe Realty. |
| | Entergy and Northeast La. Power Cooperative had representatives on hand to advise students in utility costs. |
| | LSU AgCenter gave information on clothing expenses needed in the real world. |
| | At the station of "chance" students experienced an unexpected expense or possibly a surprise gain in funds. |
| | | Overall view of the "Welcome to the Real World" simulation at Crowville School. |
| | Guice Insurance Agency made students aware of the options available to protect themselves from major loss. |
| | D & N Productions talked to students about including money in their budget for entertainment and leisure activities. |
| | Franklin NIRI talked to students about grocery cost and students paid for their groceries with their sample debit card. |
| | Dennis Crain Dodge also helped students with transportaion needs. |
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