Session 1 · TRACE: Causes & Consequences
Cash, debit, credit and interest
- 10 minCash, debit card, credit card and 'buy now, pay later': where does the money come from in each one? Which ones are borrowing?
- 20 minInterest grows: work out what happens to $100 borrowed on a credit card at about 20% a year if you pay nothing back for three years. Then work out $100 saved at 5% a year for three years. Graph both.
- 15 minScenario cards: a fictional teenager buys shoes with 'pay later' and misses a payment. Trace the consequences: late fees, stress, less money next month. What choices could change the story?
- 5 minAdd a 'borrowing vs saving' box to the Money Smarts guide.
Session 2 · TRACE: Causes & Consequences
When things go wrong
- 10 minConsumer rights: under the Consumer Guarantees Act, things you buy from a business must be of acceptable quality, do what they are meant to do and match their description.
- 20 minScenario role-play: faulty headphones, a jacket that doesn't match its photo, a change of mind, a broken phone after a drop. Which are covered? What should the shop do: repair, replace or refund?
- 15 minPeaceful resolution ladder: talk to the business, then a complaint, then the Disputes Tribunal; problems with a council can go to the Ombudsman; landlord problems to the Tenancy Tribunal; Te Tiriti claims to the Waitangi Tribunal. Match each problem card to the right step.
- 5 minExit card: why is it better for a country to have tribunals and ombudsmen than to let people sort out disputes on their own?
Getting started
Use the interest table with the first year already filled in, and scenario cards with a picture of each problem.
Stretch
Use a spreadsheet to show what happens to the credit card balance if you pay only the minimum each month.
Checkpoint
Each student can explain the difference between debit and credit and show with numbers how interest makes debt grow.
Activities for this week
- Interest race: borrowing vs saving: How fast does money grow when you borrow or save?
- Consumer rights scenarios: What are your rights when something you buy goes wrong?
Useful this week
- Consumer Guarantees Act ↗ Your rights when something you buy is faulty or not as described.
- Fair Trading Act ↗ The law that stops businesses misleading customers.
- Disputes Tribunal ↗ How everyday disputes are settled fairly without lawyers.
- Make a complaint ↗ How the Ombudsman looks into complaints about councils and government agencies.