Rob Massimi is one of those teachers that we all remember from high school. High energy, creative, humorous and someone who believes in giving his students agency to drive their own learning. In this podcast, Rob, an Economics teacher at Bronx High School of Science, describes his favorite activity, the Wheat Market game, shares his students' anxieties about money and highlights his approach to teaching investing. It's clear that he's created an Econ course that his students will remember. Enjoy! 

Details:

• 0:00~2:28 Introduction
• 2:28~7:17 Rob’s life before becoming a teacher
• 7:17~9:57 Early money lessons
• 9:57~16:11 Making connections to personal finance 
• 16:11~19:29 Topics students are interested in
• 19:29~19:57 A word from NGPF
• 19:57~22:18 The Wheat Market Game
• 22:18~26:32 Research project on stocks 
• 26:32~30:54 Teaching students about index funds
• 30:54~31:56 Anxieties around paying for college
• 31:56~33:48 Outcomes of students learning about finance
• 33:48~36:00 Considering personal finance as a stand-alone class 
• 36:00~38:08 Steps needed to bring personal finance to every school 

Resources:

• The Wheat Activity

Quotes:

• “In terms of teaching personal finance, I am not teaching a standalone class so I can’t go through 70 or 80 lessons just on personal finance. But what I do is find ways to integrate them into my class for econ. When I am in between units I do 2 or 3 segments on a personal finance topic and throughout the year I find my spots to integrate or drawback on personal finance topics.”

About the Author

Tim Ranzetta

Tim's saving habits started at seven when a neighbor with a broken hip gave him a dog walking job. Her recovery, which took almost a year, resulted in Tim getting to know the bank tellers quite well (and accumulating a savings account balance of over $300!). His recent entrepreneurial adventures have included driving a shredding truck, analyzing executive compensation packages for Fortune 500 companies and helping families make better college financing decisions. After volunteering in 2010 to create and teach a personal finance program at Eastside College Prep in East Palo Alto, Tim saw firsthand the impact of an engaging and activity-based curriculum, which inspired him to start a new non-profit, Next Gen Personal Finance.

More posts by Tim