The Bible and Budgets

Suggested Target Age: Grades 5-8

Topics Covered: budgeting

Time Required: approximately 40 minutes

What Will the Students Learn?

  • Some basic Biblical principles about money, giving, and saving
  • How to compose a budget

State Contents Standards Key
California: Math grade 5 – 1.0, 1.2, grade 6 – 1.4, grade 7 (Career/Business finance)- 1.2, 1.6,
1.7
Florida: DD.D.1.2 (subpoints 1,2,5); MA.A.3.3, MA.B.3.3
Indiana: Math 5.1.1, 5.1.4, 6.1.4, 6.2.3, 6.2.8, 6.2.9, 7.2.1, 8.2.3, 8.2.4; Social Sciences 5.4.8,
6.4.11
Virginia: Economics/Financial Literacy Objectives 1,4,6; Math 5.6, 6.1, 6.6, 6.7, 6.8, 7.1, 7.4,
8.4; CE.1, CE.10

Materials Needed:

NOTE: This lesson does not require computers or Internet access. However, it would be useful if the instructor had a computer, Power Point, and an LCD projector. Then “ The Money Verses Quiz” could be projected one question at a time on the screen for the students to answer, rather than the leader just reading the quiz questions.

Lesson Plan:

Set-Up: Gather students together in the classroom.

1. Introductory Activity. Have the class take the “Money Verses Quiz.” Money Divide the group in half – whichever group answers the most questions right wins. For the ten questions (and answers) of the Money Verses Quiz, see Appendix 1 below.

2. Ask the kids what topics they think Jesus talked about a lot. (Answers will vary – God, relationships, love, church). They may be surprised, but MONEY was one of the very most common topics that Jesus talked about. Jesus spoke about money more than any other subject except love and heaven! Clearly God and Jesus think that money is important and handling money well—which we call “stewardship” – is critical.

3. Review the Biblical Verses on Money with the students. You can read these aloud, or choose students to read them, or call out the texts and have the students look them up and read them aloud. You just want to give the kids a sense that the Bible has a lot to say about money, and that these texts are all over the place, in the New and Old Testaments.

4. Since money management is important, explain to the students that today they are going to learn about making a budget. A budget is a plan for how to manage money – a plan that helps you accomplish your financial goals. People have all kinds of financial goals – like saving enough money to buy something special like a bike or a car, or giving a certain amount of money away to charity every year.

5. Divide the students into small groups (of about 3 students each) and pass out the Student Summer Budgeting Worksheet

6. The students are going to pretend that they will earn $500 this summer mowing lawns. The issue is—how are they going to budget that? What amount (and percentage) will they save, give, and spend? Have the students work together in their small groups to compose their budgets.

6. When all the groups are finished, invite a representative from each group to stand up and describe the budget his/her group came up with. Other class members can ask questions – like whether they think the decisions made in the budget plan are realistic (for example, suppose one small group claims that they plan to save 75% of their income. Do the rest of the students think that is really possible?)