Concept:    Withholding Allowance

In January participants choose a Knabian job in order to establish a regular source of income. Just as in the U.S.A. they have to fill out a W-4 form in order to inform the Knabian government about their withholding allowance.

Objectives
Learners will:

  1. Compare wages and opportunities in order to make employment decisions
  2. Understand wages and deductions
  3. Evaluate withholding options
  4. Determine gross and net income

Knowledge and Ideas:

  1. Gross and net pay
  2. Standardized deductions: FICA/State and Federal Taxes
  3. Monthly statements
  4. Role of government in employment

Skills and Capabilities:

  1. Compare wages and advancement opportunities in choosing employment
  2. Prediction and estimation
  3. Fill out a W4 form

Values:

  1. Employment
  2. Financial planning
  3. Responsibilities of employment


National Standards: Mathematics

  1. Uses basic estimation techniques effectively (e.g., overestimate, underestimate, range of estimations). (Benchmark, procedural; Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, 1989, 94; Mathematics Content Specs, 8, National Assessment of Educational Progress, 6; Mathematics Assessment Framework, National Assessment of Educational Progress, 26.)
  2. Solves real-world problems involving percents. (Benchmark, procedural; Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, 1989, 87; Benchmarks for Science Literacy, American Association for the Advancement of Science, 1993, 291; Mathematics Content Specs, 8, National Assessment of Educational Progress, 8; Mathematics Assessment Framework, National Assessment of Educational Progress, 27.)
  3. Selects and uses appropriate type of estimation (e.g., overestimate, underestimate, range of estimate) to solve real-world problems. (Benchmark, procedural;Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, 1989, 94; Mathematics Content Specs, 8, National Assessment of Educational Progress, 6-7; Mathematics Assessment Framework, National Assessment of Educational Progress, 26.)
  4. Interpolates or extrapolates from data presented in various forms (Benchmark, procedural; Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, 1989, 105-107; Mathematics Content Specs, 8, National Assessment of Educational Progress, 21; Mathematics Assessment Framework, National Assessment of Educational Progress, 36.)
  5. Constructs, reads, and interprets data in charts, tables, and graphs. (Benchmark, procedural; Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, 1989, 105-107; Mathematics Content Specs, 8, National Assessment of Educational Progress, 22; Mathematics Assessment Framework, National Assessment of Educational Progress, 37.)


National Standards: Economics

  1. Knows that people who are unemployed usually have less income to buy goods and services than those who have jobs.
    (Benchmark, declarative; Framework for Teaching Basic Economic Concepts with Scope and Sequence Guidelines, K-12, Saunders & Gilliard, 1995, 96; Economics: What and When, JCEE, 45.)
  2. Knows the four basic categories of earned income: wages and salaries, rent, interest, and profit.
    (Benchmark, declarative; Framework for Teaching Basic Economic Concepts with Scope and Sequence Guidelines, K-12, Saunders & Gilliard, 1995, 94; Economics: What and When, JCEE, 45.)
  3. Knows that the government pays for the goods and services it provides through taxing and borrowing.
    (Benchmark, declarative; Framework for Teaching Basic Economic Concepts with Scope and Sequence Guidelines, K-12, Saunders & Gilliard, 1995, 95; Colorado Council on Economic Education, 7; Economics: What and When, JCEE, 37; Expectations of Excellence: Curriculum Standards for Social Studies, NCSS, 1994, 41.)


National Standards: Life Skills

  1. Identifies important benefits and procedures of prospective employers (salary, deductions, vacation).
    (Benchmark, declarative; Workplace Basics: The Essential Skills Employers Want, Carnevale, Gainer & Meltzer, 1990, 281.)
  2. Analyzes a current job and its future possibilities.
    (Benchmark, procedural; Workplace Basics: The Essential Skills Employers Want, Carnevale, Gainer & Meltzer, 1990, 284.)
  3. Understands the rules and regulations of the Internal Revenue Service.
    (Benchmark, declarative; Workplace Basics: The Essential Skills Employers Want, Carnevale, Gainer & Meltzer, 1990, 281.)


Wisconsin's Model Academic Standards: Language Arts, E. Media and Technology.

Students in Wisconsin will use media and technology critically and creatively to obtain, organize, prepare and share information; to influence and persuade; and to entertain and be entertained.

Learners will:

  1. Use computers to acquire, organize, analyze. and communicate information (E.8.1).
  2. Collect information from various on-line sources, such as web pages, news groups ands listservs (E.8.1).


Wisconsin's Model Academic Standards: Mathematics

Learners will:

  1. Use reasoning abilities to
    • evaluate information
    • perceive patterns
    • identify relationships
    • formulate questions for further exploration
    • evaluate strategies
    • justify statements
    • test reasonableness of results
    • defend work (A.8.1.)
  2. Communicate logical arguments clearly to show why a result makes sense (A.8.2).
  3. Read and understand mathematical texts and other instructional materials and recognize mathematical ideas as they appear in other contexts (A.8.6).
  4. Use reason and logic to evaluate information (A.12.1).
  5. Communicate logical arguments and clearly show
    • why a result does or does not make sense
    • why the reasoning is or is not valid (A.12.2).
  6. Analyze nonroutine problems and arrive at solutions by various means, including models and simulations, often starting with provisional conjectures and progressing, directly or indirectly, to a solution, justification, or counter-example (A.12.3)
  7. Read and understand
    • mathematical texts and other instructional materials
    • writing about mathematics (e.g., articles in journals)
    • mathematical ideas as they are used in other contexts (A.12.6).
  8. Perform and explain operations on rational numbers (add, subtract, multiply, divide) (B.8.2).
  9. Apply proportional thinking in a variety of problem situations that include, but are not limited to
    • ratios and proportions (e.g., rates, scale drawings, similarity)
    • percents, including those greater than 100 and less than one (e.g., discounts, rate of increase or decrease, sales tax) (B.8.5).
  10. In problem-solving situations, select and use appropriate computational procedures with rational numbers such as
    • calculating mentally
    • estimating
    • using technology (e.g., scientific calculators, spreadsheets) (B.8.7).
  11. Compare real numbers using
    • order relations (>, <) and transitivity
    • arithmetic differences
    • ratios, proportions, percents, rates of change (B.12.2)
    • Perform and explain operations on real numbers (add, subtract, multiply, divide) (B.12.3).
  12. Create and critically evaluate numerical arguments presented in a variety of classroom and real-world situations (e.g., political, economic, scientific, social) (B.12.5).
  13. Routinely assess the acceptable limits of error when
    • evaluating strategies
    • testing the reasonableness of results
    • using technology to carry out computations (B.12.6).
  14. Determine measurements indirectly using estimation (D.8.4, D.12.3).
  15. Work with data in the context of real-world situations by
    • formulating questions that lead to data collection and analysis
    • using technology to generate displays, summary statistics and presentations (E.8.1).
  16. Use the results of data analysis to
    • make predictions
    • develop convincing arguments
    • draw conclusions (E.8.4)
  17. Determine the likelihood of occurrence of simple events by
    • using a variety of strategies to identify possible outcomes (e.g., lists, tables, tree diagrams)
    • conducting an experiment
    • designing and conducting simulations (E.8.7).
  18. Work with data in the context of real-world situations by
    • formulating hypotheses that lead to collection and analysis of one- and two-variable data
    • using technology to generate displays, summary statistics, and presentations (E.12.1).


Illinois Learning Standards: State Goals 6-10: Mathematics

Learners will:

  1. Solve practical computation problems involving whole numbers, integers and rational numbers (6.B.3a).
  2. Select and use appropriate arithmetic operations in practical situations including calculating wages after taxes, developing a budget and balancing a checkbook (6.B.4).
  3. Select computational procedures and solve problems with whole numbers, fractions, decimals, percents and proportions (6.C.3a).
  4. Show evidence that computational results using whole numbers, fractions, decimals, percents and proportions are correct and/or that estimates are reasonable (6.C.3b).
  5. Solve problems involving recipes or mixtures, financial calculations and geometric similarity using ratios, proportions and percents (6.D.4).
  6. Apply formulas in a wide variety of theoretical and practical real-world measurement applications involving perimeter, area, volume, angle, time, temperature, mass, speed, distance, density and monetary values (7.A.4b).
  7. Construct, read and interpret tables, graphs (including circle graphs) and charts to organize and represent data (10.A.3a).


Illinois Learning Standards: State Goal 15 U. S. Economic Systems

Learners will:

  1. Describe how wages/salaries can be earned in exchange for work (15.A.b).
  2. Describe unemployment (15.A.2c).
  3. Identify the types of taxes levied by differing levels of governments (e.g., income tax, sales tax, property tax) (15.E.3a.).


Minnesota--The Profile of Learning: Preparatory Standards (High School Level)

Mathematics
Learners will:

  1. Use properties of mathematics to justify reasoning in a logical argument.
  2. Translate between real-world situations and mathematical models using:
    • graphs
    • data tables and/or spread sheets
    • verbal descriptions.

Personal and Family Resources Management.
Apply the fundamentals of personal/family resource management through informed decision making.

Learners will:

  1. Know personal finance terminology.
  2. Prepare personal income tax statements.


Minnesota--The Profile of Learning: Preparatory Standards (Middle School Level)

Mathematics
Learners will:

  1. Use number concepts, relationships and computational procedures to communicate, solve problems and evaluate results.
  2. Select appropriate methods to estimate or compute.
  3. Apply proportional reasoning to solve a variety of problems using rates, ratios, proportions and percents.
  4. In problem situations connect verbal, symbolic and graphical representations, identify constraints, propose and justify solutions.
  5. Use properties of mathematics to informally justify reasoning in a logical argument.

Managing Resources: Technology Applications
Learners will:

  1. Access and evaluate information from electronic sources.


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