By incorporating counting money and budgeting goals into Individualized Education Program (IEP) plans, children can learn and practice these essential life skills, setting them on a path toward financial success and a brighter future. So let’s dive in and explore how counting money and budgeting IEP goals can help children with learning disorders develop these crucial life skills and improve their overall quality of life.

Counting money and budgeting IEP goals: Helping kids with crucial life skills?

Counting money and budgeting are important life skills that are necessary for financial independence and success. These skills involve not only the ability to accurately count and manage money, but also the ability to plan and make informed financial decisions.

For some children, recognizing and identifying different coins and bills can be challenging. This may be due to a lack of experience with handling money or difficulties with visual recognition. The ability to understand the value of different coins and bills can also be challenging, as it requires a solid understanding of math concepts such as addition and subtraction.

Counting money and making change quickly and accurately is essential for everyday financial transactions. Children who struggle with these skills may have difficulty with tasks such as grocery shopping or buying items at a store. These skills require a combination of math skills, fine motor skills, and executive functioning skills such as attention and planning.

Managing expenses and creating a budget involves not only counting money but also making informed financial decisions. This requires an understanding of basic financial concepts such as income, expenses, and savings. Children who struggle with budgeting may have difficulty prioritizing expenses, tracking spending, and making decisions about how to save and invest money.

Apart from some life skills activities, Setting counting money and budgeting goals in IEPs can help children develop crucial life skills that will benefit them in the long run. These skills include numeracy, financial literacy, and decision-making.

To develop goals related to counting money and budgeting, the child’s current level of understanding of money should be assessed. This can include identifying coins and bills, income and expenses, counting money, and making changes. Goals can then be set to help the child develop these skills further, such as being able to identify different denominations of coins and bills or being able to count money up to a certain value.

Counting money and budgeting IEP goals

Counting Money IEP Goals:

1. The student will identify and name the different denominations of coins (penny, nickel, dime, quarter) with 80% accuracy, as measured by teacher observation and assessment.
2. The student will identify and name the different denominations of bills ($1, $5, $10, $20) with 80% accuracy, as measured by teacher observation and assessment.
3. The student will match the correct value to each coin (penny, nickel, dime, quarter) with 80% accuracy, as measured by teacher observation and assessment.
4. The student will match the correct value to each bill ($1, $5, $10, $20) with 80% accuracy, as measured by teacher observation and assessment.
5. The student will identify the total value of a set of coins up to $1 with 80% accuracy, as measured by teacher observation and assessment.
6. The student will identify the total value of a set of bills up to $10 with 80% accuracy, as measured by teacher observation and assessment.
7. The student will identify the total value of a mixed set of coins and bills up to $20 with 80% accuracy, as measured by teacher observation and assessment.
8. The student will count out a given amount of coins up to $1 with 80% accuracy, as measured by teacher observation and assessment.
9. The student will count out a given amount of bills up to $10 with 80% accuracy, as measured by teacher observation and assessment.
10. The student will make changes using a given amount of coins and bills up to $5 with 80% accuracy, as measured by teacher observation and assessment.

Budgeting IEP Goals:

1. The student will create a personal budget for one week, including income and expenses, with 80% accuracy, as measured by teacher review.
2. The student will track expenses daily and record them in a budget tracker with 90% accuracy, as measured by teacher observation.
3. The student will prioritize expenses and categorize them as essential or non-essential with 80% accuracy, as measured by teacher review.
4. The student will identify areas where expenses can be reduced or eliminated and create a plan to do so with 80% accuracy, as measured by teacher review.
5. The student will research prices and compare costs for a specific item or service and make a cost-effective decision with 80% accuracy, as measured by teacher review.
6. The student will identify ways to increase income and create a plan to do so with 80% accuracy, as measured by teacher review.
7. The student will create a savings plan and determine the amount to save each month with 80% accuracy, as measured by teacher review.
8. The student will identify long-term financial goals, such as saving for college or a major purchase, and create a plan to achieve them with 80% accuracy, as measured by teacher review.
9. The student will track progress toward financial goals and adjust the budget as needed with 80% accuracy, as measured by teacher observation.
10. The student will explain the importance of budgeting and saving money to others with 80% accuracy, as measured by teacher review.

How can teachers ensure that the counting money and budgeting IEP goals impact students positively?

Teachers can ensure that Counting Money and Budgeting IEP Goals impact students positively by implementing evidence-based practices and strategies that have been proven to be effective in teaching these skills. Here are some strategies that teachers can use:

1. Use visual aids:

Visual aids can help make abstract concepts more concrete and easier to understand. For example, teachers can use pictures of different coins and bills to help students identify them. Teachers can also use charts or diagrams to help students understand how to count money or create a budget, like, a budget chart could show different categories of expenses, such as food, clothing, and entertainment, with columns for planned spending and actual spending.

2. Provide opportunities for practice:

Teachers should provide plenty of opportunities for students to practice counting money and creating budgets. This can include role-playing, games, manipulatives, and real-life scenarios. For instance, teachers can provide students with play money and have them practice counting out different amounts. Teachers can also create real-life scenarios, such as having students plan a budget for a trip to the grocery store or a day out with friends.

3. Use positive reinforcement:

Teachers can use positive reinforcement, such as praise and rewards, to motivate students and reinforce correct responses or behavior. This can include praising a student for correctly identifying a coin or bill or completing a budget accurately.  Teachers can also provide small rewards, such as stickers or a special privilege, to motivate students and reinforce good behavior.

4. Break down tasks into smaller steps:

Teachers can break down complex tasks, such as creating a budget, into smaller, more manageable steps. This can help students feel less overwhelmed and more confident in their ability to complete the task. For example, when teaching budgeting, teachers can start by having students identify their sources of income, then have them list their expenses. Next, teachers can have students categorize their expenses and set spending limits for each category. Breaking down the task into smaller steps can make it more manageable and less overwhelming for students.

5. Use multi-sensory approaches:

Teachers can use multi-sensory approaches, such as using manipulatives or incorporating movement into the lesson, to help students engage with the material and reinforce their learning. When teaching counting money, teachers can use manipulatives, such as plastic coins and bills, to help students visualize and touch the money. Teachers can also incorporate movement, such as having students act out a scenario where they buy something with their money.

6. Provide feedback and progress monitoring:

Teachers should provide ongoing feedback and monitor progress to help students track their progress and identify areas where they need additional support or practice. For example, teachers can point out areas where they are improving or areas where they need more practice. Teachers can also use progress monitoring tools, such as checklists or rubrics, to track student progress and identify areas where they need more support.

7. Collaborate with parents and caregivers:

Teachers should collaborate with parents and caregivers to ensure that students are getting consistent support and reinforcement at home. They can send home materials or resources for parents to use with their children, such as budgeting worksheets or money games. Teachers can also communicate with parents about student progress and areas where they need more support.

Conclusion

Counting money and budgeting IEP goals are important tools for helping children develop crucial life skills that will benefit them throughout their lives. By practicing these skills early on, children can improve their math abilities, financial literacy, and decision-making skills, setting them up for greater independence and self-sufficiency in the future. Incorporating these goals into IEP plans is a proactive way to help children with disabilities acquire the skills they need to manage their finances and make informed decisions about their money.

With these skills, they can plan for their future needs, set financial goals, and make choices about their money with greater confidence and autonomy. Ultimately, counting money and budgeting are more than just practical skills – they are essential life skills that can help children with disabilities achieve financial success and improve their overall quality of life.

Manpreet Singh

An engineer, Maths expert, Online Tutor and animal rights activist. In more than 5+ years of my online teaching experience, I closely worked with many students struggling with dyscalculia and dyslexia. With the years passing, I learned that not much effort being put into the awareness of this learning disorder. Students with dyscalculia often misunderstood for having  just a simple math fear. This is still an underresearched and understudied subject. I am also the founder of Smartynote -‘The notepad app for dyslexia’, 

The post Counting Money And Budgeting IEP Goals appeared first on Number Dyslexia.

The list of budgeting apps that we elucidated here can not only be assistive choices for individuals with learning disabilities but also help to improve their personal finance skills over time. You may check these suggestions to see which of them is a fit for you. 

Importance of budgeting- And the role of budgeting apps 

Budgeting skills mostly rely on the gripping knowledge of numbers and letters. Due to this reason, individuals with LD often face problems in organizing their expenses and budgeting their finance. They can employ strategies like simple role-play activities and other learning sessions to enhance these skills gradually. 

Budgeting apps can be one assistive companion for these individuals. In a Nutshell, budgeting apps are software applications that can be accessed across devices to track and maintain personal transactions related to finance. These apps basically act as records and trackers of common figures like incomes, expenses, savings, EMIs, investment portfolios, and even insurances. 

As budgeting apps can be availed effortlessly from application stores, these can turn into a good option for individuals who have learning compromises to make and update financial records anytime effortlessly.  

Budgeting apps for learning disabilities- Features to ensure

Every app nowadays is full of different features. However, a few features make these apps perfect for people with learning disabilities who want to learn about budgeting. Here are a few eminent features to look out for:

• Easy access to all the transactions is important. The access gets easy when the individual can access and modify transactions in one or two taps. 
• Has to sync with banks and other accounts. Managing bank accounts is arduous for learning disables; those budgeting apps that provide scope to manage all bank accounts at one click make it easy for special individuals. 
• Easy inferences of data. Individuals with LD can interpret visual presentation easily. So the apps representing data in pie or bar graphs are preferable. 
• Security makes a budgeting app reliable. Choosing those apps that come with passcode security is preferred. 
• Voice inputs can be a great add-on to the app as this feature mitigates typing efforts. 

Top Budgeting Apps For You- Our Suggestions

1. Intuit Mint

Mint is an easy-to-use budgeting app that comes with a white and green theme. It focuses on maintaining records and setting financial goals all in one place. All the transactions can be added and modified with one tap.

There are multiple features that make it handy. The users can monitor their cash flow, plan their spending, save money and manage bills. It also comes with support for pre-setting of transaction and financial goals. Interestingly, it comes with support for cryptocurrency too.

As the presentation of trends and other figures are depicted visually in bar graphs, it can be a good choice for people with learning disabilities to infer and maintain the software easily.

App link: Play store | App store | web app

2. Money manager: Budget planner by learnings.Ai

With a serene white and black theme, this app ensures to be a straightforward choice for users by giving all the options right at the opening screen. It comes ad-free, ensuring a disturbance-free experience to the user.

This app comes with all the needed budgeting features like expense tracking, provisions for investments, bills, insurances, and other entries. Adding or modifying an entry is easy here. 

There are multiple features that make it suitable for people with learning compromises. First, the presentations are shown in pie chart format- ensuring visual appeal. Second, there is a provision to set reminders for a future transaction, improving the executive abilities. Finally, there are multiple language options to choose from. Individuals may choose the easier language from the list. 

App link : App store

3. Budget Planner by DigitLeaf

With a simple white and orange theme, the app comes with four options in the menu bar and details below them. Users can choose to see trends of their budgeting, percentile of each expense and income in graph format, and a few other options. 

The dashboard on the welcome screen gives a clear picture of the user’s portfolio. They can traverse through different entries and modify their transactions. Users can add new customized categories at any time and reflect them in their portfolio. This app also comes with an inbuilt calculator making estimation easier in the app itself. 

This application supports voice recognition for entries which makes this one perfect for people with learning disabilities. Moreover, an option of auto-filling makes it easy for the users with LD to make entries. 

App link: play store

4. Monefy by Reflectly

Monefy redefines the meaning of budgeting with some distinct features. First, it comes with multi-device support. Implying that the user can maintain the record from multiple devices. Second, it can be synchronized with google drive or dropbox. 

Other features of the app include provision for multiple accounts on a single device, a passcode for each account or app, a built-in calculator, and default category suggestions. With this app, users can take control of recurring payments.

Learning Disables can take the support of their mentors or peers by easily synchronizing their budget with other devices. Also, it has a provision to record every minor expense like coffee bills to make short-time estimations. 

App link : Play store | App store | Web app

5. Mobills  by Mobills INc. 

Mobills ensures complete monthly planning with a few settings made in it. With a serene interface, it welcomes the users with a dashboard with a summary and recent categories. 

It encompasses all the budgeting features in a detailed manner. For example, it can store the notes, statements, and bills of the transaction making it easier to recall. Another unique feature is that individuals can manage all credit cards in one place. 

What makes this app useful for Learning Disables are its features like detailed transaction entry, geolocation-based expenses categorization, and better scope for credit card and debt control. 

App link: Play store | App store

6. Toshl Finance by Toshl INc. 

If the individual makes transactions in multiple currencies or traverses different countries, Toshl can be a good choice. With the support of 200 currencies, it stands a step above in versatility. Also, the app can be connected to multiple bank accounts. This implies that even bank transactions can be handled and tracked from this app.

Other features include support of 2 accounts in the free version or 2 budgets. It ensures to offer all the features like an inbuilt calculator, divide expenses by category, multi-device support, and optional rollovers to the next period. 

Toshl comes with multiple presentations of data like pie charts, bubble graphs, and expense location maps, making it a good choice for learning disables. Also, bank synchronization and multi-device support are additional add-ons. 

App link: Play store | App store | Web app

7. Money manager by Realbyte Inc.

The money manager is a comprehensive budgeting app that can be employed for business and personal purposes. The feature of double-entry bookkeeping makes it special and better organized. 

Some of the chief features include credit/debit card management, passcode for security, and transfer of money. It comes with a bookmark function using which users can save a few categories that they look to access regularly. Also, it comes with a sub-category ON-OFF function which implies that the same sheet can be viewed by applying or removing a function or entry- increasing flexibility for the user.

The bookmarking feature is a good add-on for users with LD. Also, the integrated calendar function can make it a better option for planning transactions beforehand too. 

App link: Play store | App store

8. Bluecoins Finance by Mabuhay Software

This app comes with an easy interface and an option to choose a dark theme. Bluecoins Finance ensures quick access to options like transactions, reminders, and worksheets. 

Some noteworthy features of this app include easy access, provision to export sheets as PDF reports, and options to manage money across multiple devices. Other features include multi-language support and multi-currency and password support.

Screen Glare can be a challenge for the LD to infer text from digital screens; the dark theme in this app can help them to read text easily. Further, multi-device support and synchronizations with bank alerts are clear add-ons. 

App link: Play store | web app

9. Coinkeeper by Disrapp

This app can be a handy option for use on both iPad and iPhones. It comes as a combination of budget apps along with the latest financial news to educate the user with regular snippets. 

With this app, the user can identify all the uncontrolled expenses to manage them. Monthly budgets can be set easily, and users can check out all the account balances on one screen when synchronized with accounts. 

This app comes with tutorials to use the interface and gives reminders for payments. These Insights along with visual statistics, make it a fit for individuals with learning compromises.

App link: Play store | App store

10. Smart Finance and Budget by Alexander Survillo

As the name depicts, this app is smart enough to make suggestions about financial planning. Once the user enters the income and estimation of expenses, it forecasts the approximate amount to be planned and free money instantly. 

Some features of this app include comparing incomes and expenses, analysis of expenses, investment and purchases management, security with a passcode, and multi-currency, and cryptocurrency support. 

People with learning disabilities can relish the remainder and suggestion feature of this app. With this app in hand, they can get an instinctive idea to move forward. 

App link: App store

Before we wind up…

Paper-based accounting and budgeting can be strenuous, especially for people with compromises like dyslexia and dyscalculia. Apps can act as an easy alternative with a large set of additional features. While there are many options available, we tried to filter out a few choices that we feel are best suited for the learning disabled. All these apps are free to download and use. Traverse these and check if any of these can be a good pick for you or your loved ones.

Manpreet Singh

An engineer, Maths expert, Online Tutor and animal rights activist. In more than 5+ years of my online teaching experience, I closely worked with many students struggling with dyscalculia and dyslexia. With the years passing, I learned that not much effort being put into the awareness of this learning disorder. Students with dyscalculia often misunderstood for having  just a simple math fear. This is still an underresearched and understudied subject. I am also the founder of Smartynote -‘The notepad app for dyslexia’, 

The post 10 Helpful budgeting apps for people with learning disabilities appeared first on Number Dyslexia.

This concept becomes crucial in adulthood, and to teach the same, employing strategies that do not feel heavy and are fun yet logical for the individual is always a win-win! In this post, we talk about why budgeting is crucial and how inquisitive minds can learn this while indulging in some fun activities. 

What is budgeting, and why is it important for Adults To Practice? 

Budgeting is the process of creating a plan involving anticipated revenue and estimated expenditure. Anticipated revenue here is the potential cash inflow for an individual, and the estimated expenditure can be defined as the outflow of the cash for the future. It is the act of balancing one’s expenses with the current income. Budgeting is instrumental for the foundation of any financial plan, and efficiency in financial management behavior is important to make these decisions.

While certain learning disabilities like dyscalculia can affect one’s budgeting skills; however, adults need to practice the concept of budgeting in daily life to ensure financial security and achieve one’s lifestyle goals. A few other reasons that make it imperative for adults to engage in budgeting are:

• It can help an adult determine their long-term and short-term goals and put them on a path toward directed objectives. It can help set criteria or a map, instrumental for allocating resources to ensure that an individual can live and fulfill their monetary needs well within their limitations. 

• It can help adults individually prepare for emergencies and unexpected expenses that their future might hold. Any individual who practices budgeting can look towards a financially stable present and meet the financial needs of the future through the process of saving.

• It is instrumental in avoiding financial overwhelm. By this, we mean that in case of excessive inflow of money or excessive outflow of money, budgeting can be the best way to combat the financial overwhelm that comes with these situations.

Fun budgeting activities to consider

While we have also talked about the various online games that help Individuals understand budgeting better, at the same time, certain activities can help adults regulate the practice of budgeting. Some of which are:

1. Reshuffle the cards

For this activity, individuals need to be guided to make index cards. This is an activity that can be played by 4 people at a time only. Another thing that would be needed apart from the index cards are 4 chits made out of paper, that would have emergency expenses listed out on them:

Dental Expense: 30$

Health Expense: 50$

Car Breakdown: 20$

Major home repair expense: 40$

• Give a strict budget of $100 only to each individual. From this, they would have to note down what they need in a week. This would include travel, food, rent, shopping, and grocery. 

• Next, the individuals will randomly pull out a chit. 
• The next step would be to calculate the usual expenses that one has written down on their index card. For example, the total is $70. 
• Now, the individual would open their chit, to see what emergency expenses have landed in their lap. For example, the person now gets “Health Expense: 50$”. 
• However, from the budget of $100, the person has already spent $70, hence, they would have inefficient to pay another $50 for health expenses. This disqualifies the player from the game.
• In the end, the person with the maximum savings wins the game.

This game not only teaches individuals about how emergency expenses can land anytime but also gives in insights into how one can plan their week smartly and wisely so that they have enough savings for any uncalled expense. 

2. Purchase Planning

This activity is perfect for adults as it involves planning, purchasing, and a whole lot of teamwork!

• Ask your team to create a list of up to 10 things they want to purchase. The price of all the things can vary here. 
• Ask individuals to respond to some other leading questions and to provide an explanation for their selection of these items in this activity. Questions asked by the moderator can be: What core values do these things symbolize for you? How would these things aid them in achieving their objectives? Will those things bring them joy?
• After that, ask the team to come up with a plan for some of the items they want to purchase in the upcoming year. 
• Help them choose how they will pay for the item based on whether they have a job, receive an allowance, or have money saved up, and assist them in adjusting each plan to their particular circumstance. 

This activity will encourage group discussions and make sure that the knowledge of budgeting is exchanged in the process. Moreover, this activity will make sure that individuals know what their needs are, and as per their needs, how they need to plan their budget. 

3. Wear someone else’s Shoes

In this budgeting activity, individuals should estimate how much they believe another individual spends each week. Hence! be ready to do some research! 

• Group the Individuals into various situations, such as being single, married, with or without children, paying off school debts, paying for a car, etc. 
• Maintain a budget using information from news stories and other sources.
• The player would now have to calculate various things like do they have enough money to pay their debts and maintain their spending plan? Individuals may add up all the costs a certain person can incur on any given day (including the small ones that are easy to forget).
• Individuals can contrast their group’s spending at the conclusion of the week with their forecast.

This game teaches financial acumen and empathy! Moreover, through this activity, the individual would learn more about budgeting as they will be fed with information related to debts, expenses, and much more. Planning a budget for someone else can also give insights to individuals which can help them with their own budgeting, and savings. 

4. Plan Meals and Grocery Shopping

This activity will encourage adults to prepare meals on a tight budget! They can either use an internet tool to create a fictitious shopping list or provide money for an actual trip to the grocery store.

• In this activity, Individuals evaluate how they spent their money at the conclusion of the week: Food-wise, did they have enough or too much? Was the food they bought wholesome?
• To take it a notch up, individuals can be given a common budget like $50 – for the individual who has a family of 2, $75- for a family of three, and $100 for a family of 4.
• Now, this would be the budget for their whole week’s grocery shopping. They can make a list of what they would need. The list can also be further divided into – needs, likes, and luxuries so that later, the things can be sorted out as per the budget given.
• For example, buying chocolates might be “Like” for some; if they have the budget for it, they can purchase it, otherwise focus more on the “want” part of the list. 

This game encourages individuals to think about the connections between food access and financial health as well as how good financial habits enhance wellbeing. It also helps set a budget for meals thereby encouraging to live a budgeted lifestyle through financial planning. 

5. The Game of Chance

All teenagers are advised to assess the expense of their education against the amount of money they hope to make in the future, according to the National Standards for Financial Literacy.

Ask participants to consider their future selves and list the following:

1) A career they are interested in (including becoming a stay-at-home parent);

2) The estimated number of children they desire; and

3) The location in which they wish to reside.

Then, have the team construct a map of their financial future that includes a plan for their schooling and a budget for their homes based on their expected future earnings. Create entertaining vision boards with their money maps using images from magazines, art supplies, and other resources. 

6. Monopoly

A strategic board game that both adults and children may play together is a monopoly. Trading houses and paying off mortgages are the game’s primary ideas. Playing this game will teach you money management skills and how to devise clever strategies to achieve your long-term objectives.

You can easily play this game with your mates and enjoy the tricks of understanding budgeting. It will help you out in the best manner for bringing the right results. 

This engaging game is perfect to understand financial competition, how money works in the real world, banking systems and structures, and how to play safely in the ever-growing market.

7. Busy budgeting calculation game

For adults to make a busy budgetary calculation game. List several sources of income and outgoing costs on index cards to make the game. Briefly explain the money entering or leaving the fictitious budget on each card. Make enough playing cards so that each individual has ten cards. 

Allow the Individuals to draw 10 cards randomly. Inform these individuals that the cards they drew include a list of their revenues and outgoings. 

Individuals should use the sheet of paper they were given to add how much money they would have had overall at the end of the month if the cards they selected accurately represented their actual income and outgoings.

8. How low will you go?

Try to outdo each other in terms of how cheap you can make your everyday spending. Add up how much money each of you spends each week on things like magazines, coffee, lunch, movies, and other entertainment. 

Find out how much you can save. An expenditure cannot be eliminated since that would be too simple. In other words, even if your morning break always consists of a muffin and a coffee and costs $4.50, you may still enjoy it. 

You may switch out the workplace kitchen coffee for a home muffin. Alternatively, you might invite friends over for a potluck instead of going out to dine or rent a movie instead of going to the cinema.

Conclusion 

It is imperative as adults to make informed decisions and have a curated timeline for one goal. Hence, it is essential to create a budgeting method that suits your personal needs. This would require an individual to have strong decision-making power, clarity of their goals, and the capability to stick to their budgeting norms. 

It is rightly said that with power comes responsibility. Similarly, finances come with the responsibility to truly enjoy financial freedom by budgeting it in the best way possible. This article highlights the importance, types, and components of budgeting activities that can help an adult indulge in the best-balanced budgeting process.

Manpreet Singh

An engineer, Maths expert, Online Tutor and animal rights activist. In more than 5+ years of my online teaching experience, I closely worked with many students struggling with dyscalculia and dyslexia. With the years passing, I learned that not much effort being put into the awareness of this learning disorder. Students with dyscalculia often misunderstood for having  just a simple math fear. This is still an underresearched and understudied subject. I am also the founder of Smartynote -‘The notepad app for dyslexia’, 

The post 8 Fun Budgeting Activities For Adults appeared first on Number Dyslexia.

Implications of poor budgeting skills

Dyscalculics don’t struggle just in school but also face certain difficulties in managing life beyond premises. They display difficulties in math reasoning, measurement, and have typically low confidence while dealing with money matters.

Here are a few implications of lacking budgeting skills:

• People don’t qualify for jobs that demand intelligent handling of money and budgeting
• In personal life too, they find it difficult to plan expenses. It may lead to unfair distribution of money among expenses of daily and long-term nature
• Lack of budgeting skills cause increase dependence on others; it makes dyscalculics prone to getting duped or taken advantage of.

Early identification and intervention are our best friends in tackling the struggle with budgeting in children, as with all learning disabilities. 

We are going to discuss the following things. How to approach an individual with dyscalculia in a way it’s beneficial both for the family and the individual. Some activities we could use to deal with initial math anxiety in children. And how we can create a culture of math in our homes to promote all-rounded mathematics skills in our children.

Supports available to diagnose budgeting skills

It’s only in schools that children get introduced to structured play. That is when they learn proper mathematical concepts. While some easily acquire skills related to math, some struggle to make a connection between their lessons. Many individuals that struggle with mathematics would admit that their difficulties started in their childhood.

Good News is individuals with dyscalculia resolve most of their difficulties, including budgeting with suitable intervention. The process starts with identifying at-risk students and diagnosing their difficulties. Specialist tutors and educational psychologists could help us with diagnosis (Trott 412-416). They could also share their expertise in diagnosing other sensory issues, giving referrals of sub-specialists, providing support to the family and child, and directing them to appropriate learning resources related to learning disabilities.

Effective intervention strategies to build budgeting skills in dyscalculics

To help children with dyscalculia who specifically have problems related to money and budgeting, introduce them early on to the value of bills and coins. You could play with your child and show him how to count fingers and then move on to adding and subtracting them. This would be their early introduction to addition and subtraction, which are key principles of budgeting. 

‘Buying and selling’ role-play is another game you could play to introduce the concepts of budgeting to your child. You could give them some bills and coins and a shopping list, and switch between the role of customer and shopkeeper. 

Every time you take your kid to the mall or a shopping center, teach him how he could spend and save money on items. Help him understand the value of budgeting. You could also suggest they save money in a jar for whatever he needs in the future. Ask him to keep an account of how much he has saved and how much more he needs to buy the desired product.

Allow him to spend what he saved on something of his choice. It doesn’t have to be a luxurious product. Even with a small product like a toy gun, your child would understand how much time it takes to save enough money to make the purchase. 

As a suggestion, you could also encourage the child to donate some money so he could cover the cost of someone’s meal. Maybe through this practical example, he would understand the value of money and how it could translate to food and shelter at places. 

How to make math more enjoyable? 

Children need to master number sense, counting, and calculation skills to acquire well-developed math-based activities like budgeting. An individual with dyscalculia however needs some extra support in the same direction. The key is to structure the practice and support that’s compatible with the child. Children with dyscalculia could gain much from it with such an approach. 

Let’s look at steps one can take to bring fluency in counting and money management by giving extra practice at home 

1. Expose them to the mathematical concepts early on

Introduce simple mathematical concepts as early as you could make the connection with the child. There is no ideal time but the earlier the better. This could be done in a variety of ways. You could show him or talk to him about simple concepts. For example, you could show the baby how to add the number of fingers and then help him count his number of fingers. 

2. Buy them toys related to mathematics 

There is no scarcity of options when it comes to mathematical toys in the market. When you think your child is ready to play with such toys, introduce him to some mathematical puzzles, anything that you think your child would enjoy. Introducing them to an early mathematical toy would make the children open to learning and remembering mathematical concepts. 

3. Consistently match the challenge to the capacity

Real progress is made when a child is challenged as per his possessed qualities. You challenge them more, they get frustrated. You challenge them with an easier prospect, it would bore them to sleep. The key is to consistently match the level of their capacity to the challenges you offer them. As a parent or educator, you should acknowledge that a child’s progress in mathematical concepts is slower than average. So be prepared to keep the pace slow. And keep going.

4. Note down the points of difficulties

Each child is different. Some may enjoy counting games and others could be put to sleep with the same set of activities. We need to be proactive in terms of picking these activities for our children. Keeping a regular check on whether the kid is enjoying the activity or not, or if they are facing difficulty is crucial to their development. Once you find a difficulty, first tackle it with your own understanding but if the child seems rigid against it, consult an expert. 

5. Enjoying the time with the child

No matter at what pace the child is progressing through his activities. Your child and you need to enjoy the time together. The more you enjoy together, the more your children will return to the activities, the more they will progress through their lessons. Build a comfortable space at school and home where children can exercise the math concepts as well as have fun with each other. 

Conclusion

Budgeting is an immensely important skill for everyone. It is an excellent marker to ensure children’s success in the future (Queensland University of Technology 20). 

However, teaching budgeting to a child with dyscalculia demands a lot of work. There would be times when the child would not progress as per your expectations, and there would be occasions when they would demand more time than you can afford to give them. However, what’s important is that as a parent and educators, we focus on what’s our overall objective, which is supporting your child through their learning disability and helping them surpass it.

Many individuals who struggle with budgeting, as well as dyscalculia, have successfully overcome their difficulties with support and thoughtful intervention. We all have the potential to overcome the challenges we struggle with. And this is no different. 

Reference:

1. Trott, Clare. “Dyscalculia in higher education.” The Routledge International Handbook of Dyscalculia and Mathematical Learning Difficulties, 2014, pp. 412-416.
2. Queensland University of Technology. “An overview of dyscalculia.” Methods for ascertaining and accommodating dyscalculic children in the classroom, 2007, p. 20. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ776577.pdf.

Pratiksha Bhatt

I am Pratiksha Bhatt, Bachelor of Life Science, and Masters in Management Studies. I have done certification courses in early education counseling. I am a writer, a mother of a child with spelling difficulties which drove me to alternative resources of education like manipulatives and participatory activities. My areas of expertise are learning difficulties, alternative learning methods, and activity-based learning.

The post How Dyscalculia Affects Budgeting Skills? appeared first on Number Dyslexia.

Gaming the financial woes away

Financial entertainment^[1] is a concept that involves leveraging the power and popularity of video games to attract people to an experience that has an instructional purpose.

Squire, 2008^[2] argues that game-based learning environments are representative of “experimental learning spaces, where learners have rich, embodied, cooperative and collaborative interactions.” Mitchell and Savil Smith declare that games make us better decision-makers and problem solvers.

Hence, there are research-based evidences available on the efficacy of virtual games in inculcating financial literacy and ethics in a generation that spends more of its time in the virtual space. Thus concrete experiences that the virtual games offer lead to a situated understanding of the financial world by its participants.

On that note, below is the list of the most popular and educative online games to familiarize students with the world of balance sheets and asset management

Top 8 online budgeting games for students

1. Claim Your Future

Claim Your Future is an online game that introduces students to a future scenario where they are given a career and an annual salary and they are expected to make lifestyle choices after drawing up a budget. This includes the decision to choose whether to take the cut with affordable housing or snip the grocery budget in half.

It invokes critical thinking and decision-making abilities in students, where they even learn to link their present educational choices with future financial returns and are able to do an informed cost-benefit analysis for the same.

Game Link: Website

2. Credit Clash

Credit clash is a game that teaches students how important it is to have a good credit score, ways to achieve it, and actions that can hurt your credit score. The kids thus battle their way to a perfect credit score as they decide whether or not to take multiple loans and how to negotiate low-interest rates.

In this process, the students learn how hard it is to achieve and maintain a good credit score.

Game Link: Website

3. The Uber Game

The Uber Game caters to the new age scenario where the Gig economy has become the flavor of the entrepreneurial world today. The game starts with the participant playing the role of a full-time Uber driver with two kids.

The game revolves around the challenge of successfully paying the mortgage in a gig economy and balancing the overall finances. Thus, it introduces the participants to the promises and problems centering on drawing your finances from short-term contract jobs.

Game Link: Website

4. Shady Sam

Shady Sam is an online game where the students get to play a negative character and are tasked to act as loan sharks. 

The aim of the game is to make the borrowers pay as much higher interest as possible. The game can act as an eye-opener for students. They get to realize how the lenders can trick them into making financially irresponsible decisions in the future and then fleece them of their hard-earned money.

Game Link: Website

5. Hit the Road Financial Adventure

Hit the Road is an online interactive game that is aimed at inculcating the habit of saving and calculated spending. It starts with a scenario where the student is going on a cross-country road trip with friends and is required to stay within the budget allotted in the beginning while spending on the said trip. Obviously, the spending list will include gas costs, food bills, and any other amenities that they might use on the way.

The student has to make sure that they do not overspend on one item and completely cut down on the other. The game calls for a sustainable and balanced approach that the student can further inculcate into a habit.

Game Link: Website

6. The Stock Market Game

This game allows for an online simulation of the global stock market and thus helps students warm up to the tips and tricks of the stock market trade. It helps them get a first-hand practical experience to get a conceptual understanding of personal finance management and investing.

They thus learn to tame the bulls and the bears of the stock market zoo.

Game Link: Website

7. Payback

Student loans can be an absolute nightmare to offload and many people spend their entire youth in debt paying for their college tuition.

Payback is an online game that teaches students the best way to manage their finances to pay off their student loans as fast as possible. The game brings into play multiple scenarios and decision-making moments like what to do if you do not land immediately into your dream job and whether to take low-paying jobs along with college classes as well as how to juggle multiple financial commitments.

It makes students aware of how student loans can become a huge financial liability and the best way to tackle them with battle-like efficiency.

Game Link: Website

8. Spent

An important part of financial literacy is teaching children about financial inclusion. This involves empathy with the less fortunate and understanding the value of items that we take for granted in our daily lives.

The game involves teaching the student to survive in a low-income family setting that lives paycheck to paycheck. The critical decision-making required at each step teaches the student the importance of sound financial planning in case of a paucity of resources and the opportunity cost of each decision.

Game Link: Website

Tips to improve the efficacy of online financial games:

1. Don’t skip the textbooks

Online financial games work best when they are supplemented with economic lessons in the classroom to allow for an all-around understanding of finance for the students. An understanding of the assets and liabilities on the balance sheet can help the student make critical decisions while playing the game as well as familiarize themselves with the consequences of their selected actions.

2. Follow the usual do’s and don’t s of playing videogames

Don’t lose your sleep over playing the games and give your eyes an adequate amount of rest. Have a fixed time allotted to play the game and maintain a disciplined stance over it. And most importantly, don’t get stuck in virtual reality and bask in the sunshine outside, now and then.

3. Observe the world around you

Observe the financial behavior of adults around you and ask them questions about how they manage their finances. You may get a sound tip or two from the experiences of others and get to apply them in your games. Remember, that’s not cheating; it’s learning.

4. Keep yourself updated

Follow the news and keep yourself updated on what is happening around the financial world. The governmental and banking regulations keep changing now and then, and it is best to stay tuned to keep yourself one step ahead. Games also often update their versions online, according to the new rules and regulations.

Summing up,

Games can be an excellent teaching aid to ensure a financially responsible future for the child. It becomes especially important in this day and age as the visual media is creating new needs and must-haves where none existed before. It has now become difficult to differentiate between survival goods and media-created needs today.

The children, thus, need to be taught resource management and cost-benefit analysis of each purchase so they are not subsumed in this world of hyper-consumerism that often leads to split-second decisions that prove to be financially catastrophic.

References

1. Maynard, N. W., Mehta, P., Parker, J., & Steinberg, J. (2012, November). Can Games Build Financial Capability? Financial Entertainment: A Research Overview. Financial Literacy Center. https://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/working_papers/2012/RAND_WR963.pdf
2. Cheng, Shonn. (2013). The design of online experiential financial literacy games.

Manpreet Singh

An engineer, Maths expert, Online Tutor and animal rights activist. In more than 5+ years of my online teaching experience, I closely worked with many students struggling with dyscalculia and dyslexia. With the years passing, I learned that not much effort being put into the awareness of this learning disorder. Students with dyscalculia often misunderstood for having  just a simple math fear. This is still an underresearched and understudied subject. I am also the founder of Smartynote -‘The notepad app for dyslexia’, 

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