Game tests students' stock market skills

by Mark Wert, Cincinnati Enquirer

Students can learn first hand about financial markets and investing through a simulation game offered by the University of Cincinnati's Economics Center beginning Oct. 10.

Read the story on Cincinnati.com.

The fall session of the Stock Market Game runs through Dec. 6. The 10-week game gives students in grades 4-12 the opportunity to learn about investing and saving by handling a virtual portfolio of $100,000.

Students typically play in teams of three or five, although individuals also can play, said Kimberly Moon, who coordinates the game across Ohio for UC.

"The students learn with their teacher about stocks, bonds and mutual funds," she said. But they learn other skills from the game, as well.

Players must do research to "learn about different stocks and companies they might want to invest in, Moon said. Teams may have to prepare a written report on why they chose certain investments, building their writing abilities and their critical thinking.

Teachers can use the game to reinforce math skills, including working with decimals and how to calculate percentages (so that the players understand what kind of return they are getting on their investment).

The game also emphasizes social skills such as negotiation, persuasion and cooperation, because it's organized through teams.

While the game only lasts 10 weeks, the short time period gives teachers and parents the opportunity to underscore how a winning strategy in the short-term competition is different than the long-term investing strategy that typically is better when the student handles their own money in real life. Teams can follow their standings on the game's website, smgohio.org, or on Cincinnati.com, search Stock game.

The first place team in each of the elementary, middle and high school divisions wins a $50 prize, with $25 going to the winning team's teacher. The second- and third-place teams win certificates.

After a spring session of the game ends in April, all the winning teams from the fall and spring sessions from the Cincinnati and Dayton regions are invited to UC for the game's portfolio challenge, including an awards banquet and a guided tour of the campus. The first place teams will compete in the challenge to win an all-expense paid visit to financial institutions in a city outside Ohio. A panel of judges will evaluate each team's presentation on their strategy and research.

Last year's challenge winners - teams from McGuffey Foundation School in Oxford and Cincinnati Country Day School - went to New York City, where they saw some of the sights of Gotham, but also went to the New York Stock Exchange and met with officials from investment firms and mutual funds, including Goldman Sachs and Lazard Ltd.

Cost to register is $20 per team or individual. To learn more, go to smgohio.org or contact Moon at 513-556-2953 or moonkf@uc.edu.