Task: In this project, research various credit cards, choose three, and prepare a power point presentation on how that credit card fits into your budget

How can we choose the right Credit Card?

Joseph Scriba

Herman H. Lehman High School

Introduction

One of the major things that young adults (ages 18 - 25) face is managing their personal finances. Many of them are getting their first credit cards and may have outstanding college loans. Some times, they don’t realize the consequences of falling behind on payments. They find out years later when they try to buy a new car or a home that a bad credit rating can cause many obstacles in attaining a loan. You have been asked to join a taskforce that will develop a handbook that will help educate young adults about their finances. The chapter you have to develop is the one dealing with credit cards.

Task

Your assignment is to create a pamphlet and/or PowerPoint presentation that advises young adults how to choose the best credit card. You will discuss, annual fees, grace period, interest rates, APR, reward programs, (ie. Frequent flier programs, gift awards), minimum payments, paying in full, and all other things that are important in making this decision.

Procedure

1 The class will be divided into small groups. Each group member will be responsible for the following:

Ø Researcher

Ø Editor

Ø Graphic Artist

Ø Facilitator

Ø Presenter

2. Members of the group must complete the following TIPS worksheets

I. Identify the Problem

II. Gather Evidence

III. Determine the Causes

IV. Evaluate the Policy

And/Or

V. Analyze & Compare the Outcome

Note – Click on the underlined text above; this action will direct you to the required worksheets your group needs to complete

3. Research various credit card services. Decide which type of card is best for your budget. In other words, for which one would you apply?

4. Design a power-point presentation of at least 10 slides comparing at least three credit cards (e.g., VISA, MasterCard, Discover, American Express, a department store card). List items such as annual fee, credit limits (cash and purchases), annual and monthly interest rates, number of days of “grace period” (if any), and additional benefits of card (e.g., travel or buying club, insurance, bonuses and premiums, purchase warranty).

5. Your Power-Point must have a brief report on which card you have chosen for your budget. Include:

· Which card and card issuer chosen and why.

· Financial data for the card (e.g., APR, annual fee,

· Why and how you expect the card to help or hinder the

look of your budget.

· “Pitfalls” to avoid with use of this card.

· How you intend to use the features of the credit card.

· How this card will help establish credit for other forms of credit (e.g., mortgage, personal and collateral loans forms).

Resources

Use the following links to help your research.

Bankrate.com	Choosing and Using Credit Cards	Credit Card Nation	Credit Talk	Money Talks
National Conference of State Legislators	StudentCredit.com

Evaluation Rubric

PowerPoint Appearance and Content : How can we choose the right credit card?

Teacher Name: Mr. Scriba

Student Name: ________________________________________

CATEGORY	(90-100%)	(80-89%)	(65-79%)	(0-64%)
Originality	Presentation shows considerable originality and inventiveness. The content and ideas are presented in a unique and interesting way.	Presentation shows some originality and inventiveness. The content and ideas are presented in an interesting way.	Presentation shows an attempt at originality and inventiveness on 1-2 cards.	Presentation is a rehash of other people's ideas and/or graphics and shows very little attempt at original thought.
Cooperation	Group delegates tasks and shares responsibility effectively all of the time.	Group delegates tasks and shares responsibility effectively most of the time.	Group delegates tasks and shares responsibility effectively some of the time.	Group often is not effective in delegating tasks and/or sharing responsibility.
Sequencing of Information	Information is organized in a clear, logical way. It is easy to anticipate the type of material that might be on the next card.	Most information is organized in a clear, logical way. One card or item of information seems out of place.	Some information is logically sequenced. An occassional card or item of information seems out of place.	There is no clear plan for the organization of information.
Text - Font Choice & Formatting	Font formats (e.g., color, bold, italic) have been carefully planned to enhance readability and content.	Font formats have been carefully planned to enhance readability.	Font formating has been carefully planned to complement the content. It may be a little hard to read.	Font formatting makes it very difficult to read the material.
Content - Accuracy	All content throughout the presentation is accurate. There are no factual errors.	Most of the content is accurate but there is one piece of information that might be inaccurate.	The content is generally accurate, but one piece of information is clearly flawed or inaccurate.	Content is typically confusing or contains more than one factual error.

Standards

Social Studies

Standard 4: Economics

Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of how the United States and other societies develop economic systems and associated institutions to allocate scarce resources, how major decision-making units function in the United States and other national economies, and how an economy solves the scarcity problem through market and nonmarket mechanisms.

ELA

Writing

a	Produce a report of information.
b	Produce a response to literature.
c	Produce a narrative account (fictional or autobiographical).
d	Produce a narrative procedure.
e	Produce a persuasive essay.
f	Produce a reflective essay

Conventions, Grammar, and Usage of the English Language

a	Independently and habitually demonstrate an understanding of the rules of the English language in written and oral work.
b	Analyze and subsequently revise work to improve its clarity and effectiveness

Functional Documents

a	Critique functional documents with an eye to strategies common to effective functional documents.
b	Produce functional documents appropriate to audience and purpose.

Conclusion

Understanding how to manage your personal finances is the key to a successful future. Young people must know how to manage money and credit. As consumers, you must learn to select accounts and credit arrangements that meet your needs but still stay within your personal budget. The choices are often tough and complex. However, these are the keys to achieving financial success throughout your life.