Brief Description

The demanding Arizona State Standards require students to begin investigating applying the use of positive and negative numbers in math, and economics in Social Studies. What better way to meet these goals than using the Real-Time Data from the Stock Market? After all, students love to talk about making money!

Timing is very flexible! You may have your students track their stocks for five or more days.

Standards and Frameworks

Technology Standards

• 3T-E2. Use a variety of technology tools for data collection and analysis
• 5T-E1. Locate information from electronic resources
• 6T-E1. Determine when technology is useful and select and use the appropriate tools and technology resources to solve problems

• 1M-E1. Read, write and order integers, whole numbers and rational numbers
• 1M-E2. Relate the basic arithmetic operations to one another (e.g., multiplication and division are inverse operations)
• 1M-E3. Demonstrate proficiency with the operations of multiplication and division of whole numbers
• 2M-E1. Construct, read, analyze and interpret tables, charts, graphs and data plots (e.g., box-and-whisker, stem-and-leaf, and scatter plots)

Academic

• Using real-time Stock Market data obtained from a website, students will record, graph and track the daily price of a stock.
• Using the above data, students will correctly calculate the daily profit or loss, as well as the final profit/loss.
• Students will use their data to predict the future of their selected stock.

• In the classroom and/or computer lab, students will use a given website to access the appropriate real-time stock market information.
• In the classroom and/or computer lab, students will use a search engine to find other real-time sources for stock market information.
• Students will use Excel to accurately record and graph their stock market data.

• Students should know basic use of the Internet, such as using the correct URL
• Students should know how to save their work to a server or disk.

• Computers with Excel and Internet access
• Graph paper (optional)
• “My Stocks” recording sheet
• “Reflecting on My Stock Investments” sheet

• Second-language, learning disabled students with attention issues, etc. may work in pairs or small groups. They should be required to follow a smaller number of stocks – perhaps even only one or two.
• Gifted students may follow an increased number of stocks, or follow industry trends.

1. If you have not used Excel before, you will need to familiarize yourself with the program, or you may choose to have the students graph by hand if you do not have access to Excel, or a similar graphing program.
2. As a class, brainstorm a long list of companies they are familiar with, and have an interest in, such as those within the food or clothing industries. Each student should pick five businesses whose stocks they would like to follow. Explain that not all companies sell stock, so the students will need to have some ideas for “second choices.”
3. Have students write down their chosen stocks.
4. In the classroom or computer lab, demonstrate the use of the following website: http://finance.lycos.com/.
5. Click on the “Find Symbol.” Choose one company, such as KrispyKreme Donuts, to demonstrate. Enter the name of the company and click search. You will then be given that company’s stock symbol.  Record this symbol to make looking it up quick and easy the next time student’s visit by using the “Enter Symbol” box.  (Note:  Some companies may have several listings, so it’s important to choose the correct one.)
6. Decide whether you would like your students to look up the previous day’s closing price, or the current day’s opening price. (A third option is to look up the stock at the same time each day, but this is difficult if each student is looking up their own independent stocks.)
7. After entering the symbol, you will be taken to a page with the above information. Show students where to look, and which price to record.
8. After the demonstration, students may then look up the stock symbol for each of their chosen companies and record it next to the name.
9. Students should then record the stock price (closing or opening – whatever you have assigned).
10. Each day (for the number of days you have designated), students must record the given stock prices for each of their five stocks, recording the data appropriately. (See attached example.) Students should also record their daily Profits/Losses.
11. Using their collected data, students may then use Excel to record their information, and create the appropriate graphs. (If you are not familiar with Excel, this can be done by hand on graph paper.)
12. When graphs are complete, have students answer the following questions (see attached worksheet):

A. Which stock showed the greatest profit? What is your reasoning for this gain?
B. Which stock showed the greatest loss? What is your reasoning for this loss?
C. Which stock fluctuated the most? Why do you think this stock rose or fell so much?
D. Which stock would you recommend to someone as an investment? Why?
E. What is your prediction for each of your stocks?

• Students will be assessed on the completeness of their data on the Stock Record Sheet.
• Students will be assessed on the accuracy of their calculations on the Stock Record sheet. Their accuracy will also demonstrate their understanding of positive and negative values.
• Students will be assessed on the construction of their Excel Graph (or the graph they have created by hand). The data should:
• Reflect five stocks
• Be displayed as a line graph
• Have appropriate labels on both the x- and y- axis.
• Have a title
• Students will be assessed on the validity of their answers to the given questions.
• For Question D on the Stock Reflections, each student will recommend the stock that shows the most promising (lucrative) trend, giving at least one reason for their choice.
• For Question E on the Stock Reflections, each student will make a valid prediction for each of their five stocks, and give at least one valid reason for each prediction.