Financial Cost Literacy

Follow our guide to become financially savvy

Learn financial literacy while solving your current financial issues.  Follow our natural learning process by Asking & Listening.  Do the exercises and repeat until you are comfortable that you are financially savvy.

Financial Module - Exercise

1. "Banking Costs"

• Google search for SA websites on banking costs. 
• How much money can you save in banking on Internet and electronically? What other advantages of electronic banking can you identify?
• Capture your findings in a Word document (copy and past what websites you like and indicate why you like them!) and do a POE (save the document on your Gmail account). 
• This Word document is your financial diary and you’re going to keep all answers from the following exercise in this diary.  

2. "Cost Comparison"

http://www.bankmonitor.co.za/
“Discover the real costs and benefits of your banking products with our bankmonitor comparison calculators.”

Exercises

• Search for the best Cost Comparison websites.
• For now, look at the savings account product comparison and find out which bank charges the highest banking charges.
• Capture your findings (The Why & What) and do a PoE.

3. Choose the best option for you

• Capture the Why & What of your choice.

4. Keep a financial diary

The concept

http://www.financialdiaries.com/index.htm
“Poverty is about the lack of money.  Sometimes it is not only about income and spending, it is also about the financial tools available to households to manage what money they have”
The objective here is for you to grow aware of the simple financial tools and principles available to everyone and to start using it in your own life!

Websites

Use these websites for their financial tools.

http://www.gcflearnfree.org/math/topic.aspx?id=27
“Do you wish your money could go farther? Do you want to save more?  Money Basics discusses money management, banking, retirement planning, and more.  Start learning the skills you need to manage your money better.  Go to GCF’s money basics (under basic maths) section and work through the 4 lessons under money management.”

Also, try Alison’s course on free financial training http://alison.com/courses/Financial-Literacy/content

http://www.practicalmoneyskills.com/personalfinance/
“Personal finance comprises a broad range of topics such as creating a budget, saving for retirement, and using credit wisely. Understanding the basics of money management will allow you to live well today and build a strong financial future.”

http://www.mint.com/2b/
“The best free way to manage your money”

Exercises

• Capture the Why & What of finance websites that you like and learn from.  Specifically mention something you learned that you did not know before! 

• Calculate your work life income

• Keep your diary of expenditure in Excel

Before your start, try answering these questions in your diary:

• How do you spend your money?
• How much is the cost of your transactions? (Shopping, banking and work)

• Start a personal budget

Before your start, try answering these questions in your diary:

• How do you budget to spend your money?
• How do you reduce your cost of transactions? (Shopping, banking and work)

5. Let others do the exercise

• Understand that you get much more than what you give. You had practice groups to learn the valuable processes from a cold start. 
• Keep your POE on Google so you can decorate your CV.
• Understand the ebio ladders and the application thereof.
• Know how to wake up intrinsic motivation and keep the ownership of the learning experiences with the individual and their groups.
• Mentor/tutor/facilitators skills and processes

Exercises and websites

• Add this South African finance website to your Google reader and get daily updates on finance information.  Familiarising yourself with financial concepts and news will make it much easier to teach and help others.

• http://www.persfin.co.za/

“Personal Finance , the online personal finance portal of Independent News and Media, delivers what few other South African content providers can - an electronic gateway to the freshest, most reliable personal finance information available on the web.  Personal Finance offers you reliable and interesting information - in plain language - on all aspects of growing your money and financial planning, from unit trusts and shares to retirement annuities and short-term insurance, from starting and running your own business to taxation.”

• http://www.gcflearnfree.org/math/topic.aspx?id=27and http://alison.com/courses/Financial-Literacy/content is especially useful when mentoring some one in finance. 

• Also, check out Alison manager, to see how your group advance: http://alison.com/manage

• http://www.uen.org/cc/uen/core/pub/displayCoreCourseLessonPlans.action?ccId=520802&itemId=14172 is another useful site to learn more about general finance concepts.

Financial Module – How to?

• Do the exercise in groups of three

Find two people in your group that you can work with.  Look at the following website: Group Processes Use these principles in your group.

• Ask a practicing person for advice.

Visit a practicing financial person (a different person from the first one!) in your community, together with your group.  Ask for advice on reducing your cost of transactions and on setting up you personal budget and spending wisely! 

• Use this information, along with the information on the Internet and set up your budget. Use Excel to list what you spend your money on and for you budget.  It is probably much easier, after this budgeting exercise, to answer the question: “How do you budget to spend your money?”

• Go and show what you have learned to at least two more people in your personal network.  This can be anyone from your parents, other family members to interested friends. 

• Email your budget spreadsheet and financial diary to your group’s members!