Relay for Life 2013

Be visible

Oh my!  I just broke one of the rules for blogging...be visible!  I can't beleive the school year is almost over and it's been months since I've posted something on my class blog!  Anyways, I will try to post some of the highlights of the school year later. Nexts chool year, I plan to do a better job at keeping this blog updated.

Relay for Life

My 9th grade class of 78 students raised around $900 of the $58,000 that the Hoover Relay for Life raised this year for the American Cancer Society.  Initially I had to do some "arm twisting" just to get them to participate but they all step up to the plate and did an amazing job!  So why do we encourage students to participate in events like this? To me, it's simple. I want them to experience the joy of giving which goes above and beyond the satisfaction of getting a good grade in classroom.

Our main fundraiser this year was to sell comfort color tank tops. 

I'm blessed to be working with pretty awesome teachers who are my friends too!

Net Worth Update (April 2013)

Assets	Mar-13	Apr-13	Change	% change
Savings Account 1	$3,539.13	$3,029.26	($509.87)	-14.41
Savings Account 2	$1,525.66	$1,525.66	$0.00	0.00
Savings Account 3	$17,055.99	$18,567.34	$1,511.35	8.86
Investment Linked Fund	$8,550.42	$8,710.40	$159.98	1.87
Schroders Commodity Fund	$9,992.27	$9,510.86	($481.41)	-4.82
Stock Holdings	$10,140.00	$10,050.00	($90.00)	-0.89
Phillip Money Market Fund	$15,013.63	$15,020.14	$6.51	0.04
Physical cash	$1,000.00	$1,000.00	$0.00	0.00
Market Value Of BTO Flat (to be built in 2016/2017)	$750,000.00	$750,000.00	$0.00
Total Assets	$816,817.10	$817,413.66	$596.56	0.07
Liabilities
Home Loan	$617,500	$617,500	$0.00	0.00
Net Worth (including flat to be built in 2016/2017)	$199,317.10	$199,913.66	$596.56	0.30
Investible Net Worth	$66,817.10	$67,413.66	$596.56	0.89

Highlights

• Drop in commodity fund offset the increase in cash, resulting in a slight overall increase of $595.56 in investible net worth
• As I will be starting work full time this month, increase in cash savings from May 2013 onward should be at least $2,000 every month
• I have dropped all my tuition classes as I no longer have the time to give tuition during weekdays due to my full time job. I might consider taking up 1 or 2 weekend tuition assignments after I have settled down in my new job.
• Target of $70,000 by Dec 2013 will be achieved by June 2013.

National Financial Literacy Month Comes to a Close

 

Financial Literacy Month comes to a Close

Well, I for one think it is awesome that we have a National Financial Literacy Month in the USA.  Financial Literacy is so important to all of us.  When I first started teaching Personal Finance I thought students were taking my class because they wanted to get rich by investing in the stock market.  Boy was I wrong.  What they taught me was that they just wanted to enjoy life and be able to easily pay their monthly bills. Those first kids taught me a valuable lesson that I carry with me today in every lesson I design.  They were so smart!

To end the month on a high note let’s take a look at two fascinating businessmen.  Check out the videos below.

Whiz Kid Investor (MoneyTrack Episode 312)



 Buffett's best tip for personal finance

 

Thanks for Stopping By!   See you in the Funny Pages!

Better To Be An Academically Uninclined Female In Singapore?

Jack and Jane were the best of friends in secondary school. Jack had always been the smarter guy who scored all As for his exams while Jane would be struggling to get just a B grade. Jack scored 8 points for O'Levels while Jane scored 20. As expected, Jack got into a top junior college while Jane enrolled at a polytechnic. Few years later, Jack achieved distinctions for his A'level exams and got accepted into a local university while Jane managed to earn her diploma and enrolled to a part-time private university programme. 

Fast forward a few years, Jack finally graduated from the local university and began looking for a job. He secured a job interview and when he arrived at the office in a tailored suit , he saw Jane. Jane was one of the interviewers. What happened?

It is proven time and time again that academic performance does not always guarantee career success. All things being equal, is the light at the end of the tunnel brighter for an academically uninclined female in Singapore? Females in Singapore have a 2 year advantage over guys who served NS. In addition to the shorter duration of a private university course compared to a local university's, private universities also offer part time degree courses, allowing students to take up a full time job in the day and gain valuable working experience while beefing up his/her resume. 

The timelines below show a clearer view of the opportunity costs of serving National Service and taking up a full time university programme :

	JC To Full-Time Local University Route
	Female	Male - Jack
Age 12	PSLE	PSLE
Age 16	O'Level	O'Level
Age 18	A'Level	A'Level
Age 19	Start of University Year 1 (June)	Army
Age 20	Start of University Year 2	Army
Age 21	Start of University Year 3	Start of University Year 1 (June)
Age 22	Start of University Year 4	Start of University Year 2
Age 23	End of University Year 4 (June)	Start of University Year 3
Age 24	First year of work @ $33600/year	Start of University Year 4
Age 25	2nd year of work @ $36000/year	End of University Year 4 (June)
Total Salary earned by age 25	$69,600.00	$0.00
Amt saved @ 20% savings rate	$13,920.00	$0.00

	Diploma to Part-Time Private University Route
	Female - Jane	Male
Age 12	PSLE	PSLE
Age 16	O'Level	O'Level
Age 18	Polytechnic 2nd year	Polytechnic 2nd year
Age 19	Earned diploma	Earned diploma
Age 20	Part Time Degree + Full Time Work @ $26400/year	Army
Age 21	Part Time Degree + Full Time Work @ $27720/year	Army
Age 22	Part Time Degree + Full Time Work @ $29106/year	Part Time Degree + Full Time Work @ $26400/year
Age 23	Full time work @ $31200/year	Part Time Degree + Full Time Work @ $27720/year
Age 24	Full time work @ $32760/year	Part Time Degree + Full Time Work @ $29106/year
Age 25	Full Time work @ $34398/year	Full time work @ $31200/year
Total Salary earned by age 25	$181,584.00	$31,200.00
Amt saved @ 20% savings rate	$36,317.00	$6,240.00

Assumptions have to be made as there are too many variations. As such, I came up with the following non-exhaustive list of assumptions for the tables above :

• No part-time job and no money saved in the 2 years of army, 3 years of diploma and 4 years of  local university
• No year-end bonus
• Annual salary increment of 5%
• Salary of full time job after diploma = $2200/month or $26400/year
• Salary of full time job after part time private university = $2600/month or $31200/year
• Salary of full time job after full time local university = $2800/month or $33600/year
• Full time job is in private sector : Male with NS same pay as female of the same rank in the company 
• Private University : 3 year course
• Local University : 4 year course
• Total tuition fees for Private & Local University assumed to be the same

In addition to the salary earned and amount saved, Jane has already accumulated 6 years of full-time working experience at the time when Jack graduated from a local university. When will Jack be able catch up?

National Personal Finance Challenge

National Personal Finance Challenge

One of the most interesting sites I came across recently is the National Personal Finance Challenge.   It sounds pretty cool.  . 

Their site reads,

The National Personal Finance Challenge is an opportunity for students to demonstrate their knowledge of Personal Finance by competing with other students across the nation in a three-round competition. The two teams with the highest scores will then compete for the national title in a fast-paced "Quiz Bowl" round.

In the spring of 2013 we will crown a new National Personal Finance Championship team. Students will have a chance to win awards such as $1,000 per team member, $500 per team member, iPads and Kindles. All students will enjoy an exciting day of challenging competition, meet students from other states, and have the opportunity to win additional prizes and cash!

The National Personal Finance Challenge will be held May 2, 2013 in St. Louis, MO.

The National Personal Finance Challenge is the culminating event to state challenges across the country. Participating states use the Finance Challenge Online portal to offer the online round in their states. Top teams then compete at exciting on-site events to crown their state champion. This year, those state winners will go on to compete in Saint Louis to determine a National Champion.  

Click on the logo below if you and your students are interested in finding out more about this competition.

 

I’d like to hear from you if you and your students have ever participated in this competition.  Please give us a review of your experience.

Thanks for stopping by!