What it shows
Money can be saved, spent or shared. Writing it in a chart shows where it goes and helps children plan.
The science
The money we have equals what we started with plus what we get minus what we spend. If we write each entry, we can see the balance any day. Saving a little each week adds up. Counting in a chart also trains addition and subtraction.
Materials
Cost: free. Many items come from home or from waste; spare parts such as LEDs, motors and wire are in the store.
- A notebook or chart paper (free)
- A pencil and ruler
- A small tin or piggy bank
- Pocket money given by a parent (a small amount, like Rs 20)
- Colour pens
Safety
For this project: Keep money in a safe place. An adult must guide choices about spending.
Never use mains electricity: power models with cells, batteries or a low-voltage adapter. Sharp and hot tools, flames and lab chemicals need an adult or your teacher beside you. Keep magnets, button cells and small parts away from young children, and wash your hands after making.
Step by step
8 steps. Do them in order, and test each part before you go on to the next. Write what you notice in a notebook as you go.
Rule a chart with columns: day, got, spent, saved and balance.
Write the money you were given at the start of the week.
Each day, write anything you spent and what it was for.
Put the saved money into the tin and note it.
Work out the balance by subtracting spending from the money you had.
Colour the money you spent in red and saved in green.
At the end of the week, add up how much you saved.
Make a goal, like saving for a book, and note how many weeks it will take.
What you should see
A chart of seven days shows what was spent and saved, and you know your total savings and a goal.
Viva questions
A teacher or a judge will ask how it works. Try to answer each question before you open it, then compare.
01What is saving?
Keeping money to use later.
02How do you find a balance?
Money you had minus money you spent.
03Why write down spending?
To know where the money went.
04What would you like to save for?
Any goal you pick.
Take it further
Plan a month and see how much you could save if you spent a little less each week.
Change one thing, measure what happens, and add a table or chart of your readings: that is what turns a model into your own investigation.
Free ebooks for this project
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