• Essential Question
  What makes our life secure?
• Unit Questions
  How do we plan our investment?
  What influences our saving?
• Content Questions
  What is investment?
  Who is investment planner or portfolio manager?
  What are the different options of investment? Explain them in brief.
  Which factors are considered while making investments?

Assessment Process
View how a variety of student-centered assessments are used in the Unit Plan. These assessments help students and teachers set goals; monitor student progress; provide feedback; assess thinking, processes, performances, and products; and reflect on learning throughout the learning cycle.

Instructional Procedures
Setting the Stage
Warm up Activity: (1st Period)
Divide students in groups of 5 students each. Pose the essential Question: What makes our life secure? Give students thinking time and ask students not to limit their thoughts in a specific direction but to brainstorm about everything that makes life secure. Possible answers - parents, education, stable job, steady income, religious practices, etc. Make representatives of each group share the key points discussed in their group.

Set the Stage
Introduce the project by presenting the scenario:
All of us have dream to have a financially secured life but to make it a reality, we need to plan. The importance of planning our investments and savings cannot be overlooked at any point of time. To study the importance of planning investments and savings, your groups have been assigned the role of financial planners of a client. After sharpening your investment tactics, you have to conduct a case study on the client’s current financial condition and suggest a feasible investment portfolio. 

Discuss the details of the upcoming project using the scenario handout (DOC 59.5KB). In brief, students will study the factors that influence saving and conduct a case study of client to suggest investment portfolio. Share the progress checklist (DOC 34.5KB) with the students for guiding and monitoring their progress independently.

Research Fundamentals (2nd Period, 2 Periods Research Time + 3rd Period Mock Session)
Ask students to refer to the list of websites (DOC 35.5KB) for articles on various topics such as savings, investment, stock market, mutual fund, fixed deposit, insurance policies, national saving certificate and real estate. Instruct students that the list of Web site is suggested list, they must research on some new investment options as the job of financial planners is to continuously research and be aware about different investment options for their clients. 

Provide research log (DOC 31.5KB) for students to summarise their research. Also remind students that each investment option has innumerable sub options but they just need to be aware about the basic investment option and what it offers to people. Closely monitor groups while they conduct research as they may go over board with innumerable investment options available and need assistance in understanding certain terms. Keep reminding students to understand the basic nature of investment option.

Give research checklist (DOC 54KB) for students to self-assess their research and information processing skills as they work on projects.

Instruct students that they have be present their research report in the class. Distribute research report score sheet (DOC 52KB) or sharing the expectations with students. Monitor students during the process and help them focus on the points given in score sheet. Ask students to discuss the outline of the report.   

Report Presentation (4th Period)
Arrange the class in an activity room where all students can face each other.

Ask students to provide a copy of their research report (DOC 49KB) to other groups. Have each group present their research report. Encourage other groups to ask questions and clarify doubts. Support students by explaining some terms and the interconnections like stock market and bullion market.

Use Seeing Reason to Study Factors that Influence Saving (5th - 7th Period)
In small groups, have students discuss - What influences our savings? Make students discuss different factors and prepare list in their journals. Orient that the factors influencing saving will be analysed using Seeing Reason Tool.

Do a quick demo of the Seeing Reason Tool and allow the students to explore the Tool on http://educate.intel.com/en/ThinkingTools/SeeingReason/TryTheTool/

Explain causal maps as a tool that helps visually represent specific, measurable factors that influence the central factor or a problem. With the help of few examples explain Cause and Effect relationships. Also explain them to the students the significance of two coloured arrows with different thickness. Introduce comment feature to communicate and receive feedback. Caution your students that relationship between cause and effect is a complex one.

Assign the Teacher ID, Team ID and password to the groups and have them build the map representing understanding of the factors related to investment plan. Have students respond to the question: What influences our savings?

As the students are in groups using the tool, be sure to facilitate their learning. As students create their maps, pose the following questions (and similar questions) to help facilitate students’ higher-order thinking:

• How have you described your factors?
• What is your evidence for the relationship you show between these factors?
• Why is this important to understand?
• What causes this to happen?
• Can you explain this relationship further?
• How does it affect this factor?

Have students refer to their journal as they contribute factors such as those shown in the following map.

Examine the Seeing Reason Activity
The Seeing Reason tool space below represents one team's investigation in this project.

Project Name: Investment Tactics
Prompt: What influences our savings?



Take on a Client (8th Period)
Distribute a client card (DOC 53KB) You may want to make strategic assignments or distribute the clients through a random drawing. To tap prior knowledge, instruct students to study about their client in their group. Encourage students to discuss about the financial condition of the client and determine the financial goals.

Have students enter the data about the financial condition of the client using the spreadsheet and guide them to make graphical representations. Help students to make their spread sheet and provide help where needed.

Focused Research (9th Period + 1 Lab Period)
Provide time for students to study the current investment pattern of the family assigned to the group. Make students interact with the financial planner of an agency for guidance by arranging an online conference or creating email groups.

Provide focused research time for students to suggest the investment portfolio to the client. Make student analyse the investment options considering factors like age, number of family members and gauging the future financial goals. Ask students to note down their learning in journal.

Introduce Visual Ranking (10th Period + 2 lab Periods)
Discuss the list of investment options that students are considering for their client. Note it down all the investment options so that the students get more options. Eliminate any investment option that is similar. Encourage discussion on what should be the final list for considering the different investment options for the clients. Point out to students the way we can categorise the different investment options for eg. gold, silver, diamond into bullion market. Once the list is finalised to a total of 7-12 investment options, enter the final list into the Visual Ranking Tool workspace to make it ready for sorting. Introduce the Visual Ranking Tool using the demonstration space at Try the Tool. Show students how to rank and compare lists, how to describe items, and explain their relative merit using the comments feature.

Have students log in to their Visual Ranking team space. Point out the prompt: Rank the following investment choices in the order of their potential benefits, listing the most beneficial options first. Ask students to consider their client’s financial goal, current investment condition and number of family members while ranking the different investment options. Have students use the comment feature of the tool to explain why they placed the investment options in that particular order. As students sort their lists, listen to their discussions and ask questions to help groups negotiate, make choices, and express their thinking.


Examine the Visual Ranking Activity
The space below represents one team's ranking using the Visual Ranking Tool.

Project Name: The best saving options….!
Prompt: Rank the following investment options in the order of their potential benefits, listing the most beneficial options first



Compare and Discuss
Once teams have finished ranking and commenting, have them compare their lists and read each other's comments about why they placed items in that order. Suggest that they identify the teams that ranked items most and least like they did. Have similar and dissimilar teams meet to discuss their rankings and rationale behind the order. Some teams may want to revise their ranking based on what they learn from discussions with other teams.

Propose Investment Portfolio (1 Lab Period)
Ask students to refer the investment spreadsheet, the visual ranking list and reallocate their savings in different investment options. Ask students to use the same spreadsheet to reallocate the savings. 

Prepare Multimedia Slides (11th Period + 2 Lab Periods)
Instruct students that they have to present their proposed investment portfolio by multimedia slides to their client.  Remind students that they need to make a simple presentation as the client should be able to understand the investment plan and the reasons for selection/reallocation of savings. Pass out a copy of the multimedia presentation rubric (DOC 45KB) before students begin working on their slides. Discuss the different criteria and help the students to understand the expectations.

Provide time to make the story board and discuss their slides within the group. Once students have completed their storyboards, discuss the drafts and provide feedback. Provide lab time to create multimedia slides. 

Deliver the Presentations (12th Period)
Set aside time for students to present their multimedia slides (PPT 229KB) to the entire class. Have audience members ask questions and assess each presentation on its thoroughness and persuasive quality.

Culminating Activity
Encourage students to share their learning about the importance of savings, decision-making, sound investments, and security. Have students reflect on: What makes our life secure? and How do we plan our investment? Make students write their reflection in their journals. 

Prerequisite Skills
Conceptual Knowledge

• Insurance
• Shares – stock market
• Banking

Technological Skills
Familiarity with:

• Multimedia Presentations
• Word Processing
• Internet Explorer 
• Spread Sheets

Differentiated Instruction
Resource Student

• Present instructions in variety of ways.
• Include checkpoints and positive reinforcement throughout the unit and assigned projects.
• Select helpful class partners who can support his/her needs.
• Allow extra time to complete assignments.
• Students can be asked to reduce amount of evidence required, pre-selected research materials and support from resource specialists.

Gifted Student

• Have them analyse the client’s financial condition for gauging the investment options.
• The student can include more advanced technical attributes in the presentation.
• Have the student serve as an expert during research.
• Encourage the student to investigate more complex questions.
• Ask the student to provide more in-depth information or analysis in the project. 

Credits
Ms. Motika Agarwal & Ms. Sudha Ranjith, teachers from Navrachana School, Sama, Vadodara participated in Intel® Teach program. A team of teachers expanded the plan into the example you see here.