Classroom ideas

Make personal finance practice part of your class

Missing Cents is a personal finance game for high school classrooms. Students complete five financial fill-in questions, review short explanations, and discuss how the concepts apply to everyday decisions.

Play Missing Cents

A quick way to practice money concepts

Each round asks students to complete five sentences with a financial term or amount. After an incorrect first answer, they can use a hint and try once more. Every answer is followed by a brief explanation that can lead into a class discussion.

Use the daily challenge as a shared class activity, or let students continue with another practice set after they finish.

Classroom example

Try this paycheck question

Jordan receives a paycheck with the following amounts:

Gross pay
$180
Total deductions
$25

Animated example: Jordan's gross pay is $180 and deductions are $25. The fill-in answer is $155 in net pay, followed by an explanation.

Answer: $155.

After the reveal, ask why Jordan should use $155 instead of $180 when making a spending plan. This checks whether students understand that a plan should use take-home pay, the amount available after deductions.

Three ways to run the same challenge

A five-question set often takes about 3–5 minutes. Add time when students need a hint or when a useful discussion develops.

  1. Individual: Students complete the set independently. If you want them to explain their thinking, have them jot down a reason on paper before the answer is revealed.
  2. Paired: Partners discuss each blank and agree on an answer before one student submits it. Ask them to explain their choice aloud.
  3. Projected: Turn on Classroom View to enlarge the question and remove extra page elements. Invite an answer from the room, enter it, and discuss the explanation together.

After the reveal

Ask one more question

Check the distinction: “Why is $155 the useful amount for a spending plan instead of $180?” This checks whether students can distinguish gross pay from take-home pay.

Change one fact: “If deductions were $35, what would Jordan's net pay be?” This checks whether students can repeat the calculation with new information.

Connect it to a decision: “If Jordan saves $30, how much remains for spending?” This checks whether students can carry the result into a simple plan.

More ways to use Missing Cents

Use the financial literacy bell-ringer guide for a short opening routine. Open the 15 fill-in-the-blank examples when you need a printable question sheet and answer key. Read the teacher guide for a closer look at hints, retries, Classroom View, and practice sets.