73° and Mist
Image
Photo courtesy of Westwood Public Schools. Avery Li (center) with teacher Amy Hayes (far left) and family.
By Darcie Fisher for Westwood Public Schools
Investing in the stock market is challenging for the most seasoned investors. Westwood student Avery Li, a fifth-grader at the Pine Hill Elementary School, may have a leg up when she is old enough to invest her own money. Li finished first in Massachusetts and second in the nation in the SIFMA Foundation’s InvestWrite essay competition.
Mark Goguen is an Instructional Technology Coach for Westwood Public Schools; he first brought The Stock Market Game to Westwood over a decade ago as a way to educate students about how finance and capital markets work.
“I think kids at this should be introduced to financial literacy concepts and they shouldn’t have to wait until they are adults to learn this,” said Goguen. “When I was teaching fourth grade, this came across my email and I signed up, and the rest is history.
Li found out about her big win at a surprise school assembly held in mid-April.
“I thought I was dreaming,” she said. “I wrote about how my stocks were doing and which stocks were good to invest in. I learned a lot because at first I didn’t know what the stock market was all about.”
Photo courtesy of Westwood Public Schools. Avery Li reacts to finding out she had placed second in the country in the InvestWrite essay competition.Li says her favorite stock to research was the popular athletic wear brand Lululemon. Students who play The Stock Market Game create a hypothetical portfolio of stocks, bonds and funds. Prizes are awarded to the most successful portfolios. Students then have the option to participate in the InvestWrite essay to discuss their investment strategy. Goguen’s students were specifically asked to write about how they diversified their portfolio.
“Financial literacy is so important, especially with what’s going on in the markets right now,” said Liz Reidel, the national director of The Stock Market Game. “These are the building blocks to financial freedom for when they graduate from high school or have their first job.”
Li won a laptop and gift cards. Her fifth-grade teacher Amy Hayes earned $350 in gift cards.
“I’ve kept this surprise for months,” said Hayes. “I am very proud of her. She’s very deserving. I can’t imagine having this knowledge when I was a kid. This program helps so many kids understand our world in a different way.”
Li’s essay was one of 517 submitted at the national level.
Thanks to Darcie Fisher and Westwood Public Schools for contributing this news to Westwood Minute.
