The Million Dollar Project

We have a new math project going on right now for children. Here's the breakdown:

The have One Million Dollars. The have to document how they will spend it down to the last penny. And yes, they have to spend every penny. They can invest in stocks or CD's, but they can not tuck "money" away under the matress. It has to be spent. Not a penny over and not a penny under.

For instance, when they shop for their house, they have to actually find a house on the GAMLS that they want to buy and provide that listing number. If they want a car, they have to provide the dealership and include taxes. If they want a mountain bike, they have to give the brand, model, add tax, shipping if applicable, etc. They can give to charity, buy a luxury vacation, etc. But they have to spend every single penny, but not a penny more. They also have to make a chart showing the house, car, and other items to show how they spent their One Million.

What I'm looking for here is responsible spending, creativity, consumer math skills, and how much self restraint my children will exercise. My sixth grade daughter will not be required to invest, but the boys will. After all, you buy shares!

They have one week to complete this project. I can't wait to see how this turns out! Next month's math project will be to manage a household budget on a set amount of money. They are actually looking forward to that!!