Financial Literacy : Appreciation and Depreciation
Connections With Other Strands
By using financial literacy contexts in other strands, students can better understand how these concepts are interconnected. Students then develop a more holistic view of mathematics, make relevant connections to their daily lives and realities, and become confident mathematicians.
The examples below illustrate how financial literacy learning can be demonstrated in other strands.
When examining each question, reflect on the knowledge and skills from the overall and specific expectations in the Financial Literacy strand that students will use, as well as the connections to the key concepts.
Number: Percents
Specific Expectations: B3.5, F1.4
Mathematical Process: Problem Solving
It’s recommended that you set aside 32% of your annual salary for housing. How much can a student with an annual salary of $12,400 afford to spend on renting an apartment?
Algebra : Linear Relations
Specific Expectations: C3.3, F1.4
Mathematical Processes: Reflecting, Representing
Marie is comparing two job offers. The first job offers a wage of $14 per hour, with an annual raise of $0.50 per hour. The second job offers a wage of $13 per hour, with an annual raise of $0.75 per hour.
- If Marie plans to keep this job for 3 years, which job would you recommend she choose? Explain your reasoning.
- Marie works an average of 15 hours per week. Her net salary is about 85% of her gross salary. She wants to save between $12,000 and $15,000 over her 3 years of work. She also needs to pay $65 per month for her cell phone, in addition to her expenses for clothing and entertainment. Create a possible budget for Marie.
Data: Data Analysis
Specific Expectations: D1.2, F1.2
Mathematical Processes: Reasoning and Proving, Reflecting
The value of a collectible comic book is represented by this scatter plot along with a regression model appropriate to the collected data.
The y-axis ranges from zero to 300 in increments of fifty, representing the value in dollars. The x-axis starts at fifty and goes up to eighty in increments of five, representing the age in years. The points form a smooth, increasing curve. The last point is placed the highest at 75 years where the value will be 275 dollars.
Ty received this comic book as a gift, and it is currently 60 years old. Ty plans to wait until its value has at least doubled before selling it. Approximately how many years should Ty wait? How do you know?
Geometry and Measurement: Modified Dimensions
Specific Expectations :E1.4, E1.5, F1.4
Mathematical Processes: Representing, Problem Solving
Sunnybrook Campground features a nine-hole mini-golf course. The owners plan to build another nine-hole mini-golf course for young children. They want to recreate the same holes, with the same width, but reduce the lengths to half of the original ones. Since the holes will be half as long, the owners assume that the costs will also be reduced by half.
- Using this hole as an example, determine if the owners are correct in their assumption.
The outline of the rectangle is brown. A brown line is drawn from the center of the left side to the right side, but does not extend from one end of the rectangle to the other. A white circle is placed under this line to the left of the rectangle. The length of the rectangle is three meters fifty, and the width is eighty-five centimeters.
- Create a budget showing the cost differences.
Multi-Strand Task
Specific Expectations: B3.5, D2.3, D2.4, D2.5, E1.3, F1.3
Mathematical Processes: Selecting Tools and Strategies, Reasoning and Proving, Reflecting, Communicating, Representing
A family wants to install solar panels on their house roof to reduce their electricity bill and contribute to environmental protection. They want to understand the initial costs, potential savings on their electricity bill, and the time required to recoup their investment to determine if installing solar panels is the best choice for them.
Here is an example of a solar panel with six modules.
Here is some additional information:
- The roof area on their house is suitable for installing solar panels is 400 square feet (40 ft by 10 ft).
- The dimensions of one module are 1 metre by 1.7 metres. In Toronto, one panel produces approximately 395 kWh per year.
- The costs in Ontario in 2024 are approximately $2.50 per kWh. However, the more you buy, the lower the costs.
- Determine the costs: Using the information provided and reliable online data, determine the approximate costs of the solar panels that can be installed.
- Establish a model: Using reliable online data or your own family's average annual electricity costs, establish a model comparing annual costs without solar panels and with solar panels.
- Set a financial goal: The family on which you based your model plans to borrow part of the amount to complete the project. They plan to use the electricity savings to repay the loan. If they obtain a loan at 4.5% interest compounded annually, how many years will it take to repay the loan? How much additional money will they need to pay if they want to reduce the loan term by 5 years?
Reflection
- What are the benefits and challenges of integrating financial literacy to illustrate and apply the concepts from other strands of the curriculum? How can this integration enrich students’ learning, and what practical and pedagogical implications could it have?
- How can the integration of financial literacy into other strands support the development of transferable skills through problem-solving with varying levels of complexity?
- What changes could be made to these problems to make them more relevant and meaningful for students?