Hosted by star mathematics teacher Eddie Woo, ‘Teenage Boss’ sees a range of teenagers from diverse families put in charge of the monthly budget to teach them valuable lessons about financial responsibility and planning.
Teenage Boss is an observational documentary series that can be used to teach students about the value of money and the importance of financial literacy. Developing financial literacy skills and capabilities is essential in ensuring that children and teenagers are able to make responsible and informed decisions and are equipped to face financial challenges now and in the future.
The series is suitable viewing for students in Years 5 to 8. Teachers of Years 5 and 6 may find the episodes that feature the youngest participants are more appropriate for their students. Teachers are advised to preview Teenage Boss prior to use in the classroom.
There are fifteen episodes in the series. Each episode has a run time of 26 minutes.
This study guide to accompany Teenage Boss provides information and suggestions for learning activities in:
- English
- Mathematics
- Humanities and Social Sciences
Teenage Boss is also relevant to the teaching of the following General Capabilities:
- Literacy
- Numeracy
- Ethical Understanding
Recommended link: https://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/resources/curriculum-connections/portfolios/consumer-and-financial-literacy/
In completing the tasks, students will have developed a knowledge and understanding of:
- The nature, forms and value of money;
- the importance of financial literacy;
- how to make responsible and informed decisions about money;
- the importance of savings;
- how decisions about money and the management of money affects an individuals and a familys quality of life.
In completing the tasks, students will have demonstrated the ability to:
- describe the spending and saving behaviours of the teenage bosses;
- analyse the financial decisions made by the teenage bosses;
- evaluate the effectiveness of the teenage bosses;
- identify their own and their familys financial priorities;
- identify their attitude to spending and saving;
- evaluate their spending and saving behaviours;
- compile a budget;
- use their own written and spoken texts to explore ideas and issues and to clarify their own and others understanding;
- respond to a documentary series both personally and in detached and critical ways.
The activities featured in this study guide promote student engagement and active participation via individual reflection, class discussions and small group work. Multiple activities are provided to allow teachers to select those that will best suit the demands of the subject and the needs of the students. Each of the fifteen episodes can be viewed as stand-alone programs. There is an activity sheet for each episode. Suggested answers to the activity sheet tasks are provided.
Episode 1: When thirteen-year old Vasanths mum gets sick while he is in charge of the family budget, he risks spending all he has saved to buy scooter accessories to make her better.
Episode 2: Thirteen-year-old Ellenor is a natural at taking control, but when her family budget takes hit after hit during the month she is in charge, her dreams of saving money for a brand new double bed quickly sour.
Episode 3: Every cent counts for thirteen-year-old Bryon as he takes over the familys finances, but with mum and dad refusing to listen tough rules need to be put in place.
Episode 4: With a massive birthday party to pay for as part of her monthly expenses, fifteen-year-old Susan needs to juggle the family budget to save enough money for the awesome headphones she dreams of buying.
Episode 5: Imogen is a fifteen-year-old star of the stage, but as the teenage boss, her focus is saving money from the family budget. Her task is all the more difficult given her dad, a professional body builder, eats a fortune in food every month.
Episode 6: When fifteen-year-old Michael comes home from his first shopping trip as teenage boss with a brand new coffee machine and next to no food, his father and brother are in for a rocky month indeed.
Episode 7: Its a rock and roll life all the way for fan girl Christabel. By taking over the familys modest income, she hopes that she can save enough to buy the guitar she craves, or better still afford a secret holiday for her mum and three siblings.
Episode 8: When thirteen-year-old Dimity becomes the boss of her family for a month she quickly discovers that unexpected school bills and her big brother and sister make saving for make-up and clothes far harder than she ever imagined.
Episode 9: Sixteen-year-old Harry is a country boy who dreams of making it big as a film maker. When Harry takes control of his family finances for a month, his desire to buy an expensive new camera with any savings ensures his parents and sister are in for a very bumpy ride.
Episode 10: Its a steep learning curve for thirteen-year-old Mikayla, when her own frivolous spending on clothes and expensive foods tips her budget into debt. Will she be able to save enough in the last two weeks of the Teenage Boss experiment to drive her budget back into the black?
Episode 11: With his little sister, Zoe along for the ride, Nick is in for a big adventure as Teenage Boss. Zoes birthday party, Dads holiday and Mums makeup expenses means that saving money from the family budget to buy a new pair of soccer boots isnt going to be easy.
Episode 12: Elinya is old enough to be learning to drive a car, but how will she go taking the wheel of her familys finances for a month given her mums secret spending and an avoidable vet bill for Missy the dog?
Episode 13: When her family budget is hit with challenges, music fan Ula rises to the occasion. As Teenage Boss, she learns not just how to save money from her family budget but how to make money to add to it.
Episode 14: Fourteen-year-old Mitchell is a whiz at solving the most grown up maths problems and puzzles, but he soon learns that being the Teenage Boss of his own family for a month is more about dealing with people puzzles.
Episode 15: Hayley loves Horses, and has her sights set on running a business based on rescuing them, but with such massive dreams at stake her parents want to give her an expense-filled month as Teenage Boss to help her prepare.
About Eddie Woo
EDDIE WOO, THE HOST OF TEENAGE BOSS, IS AN AUSTRALIAN MATHEMATICS TEACHER. WOO IS THE HEAD MATHEMATICS TEACHER AT CHERRYBROOK TECHNOLOGY HIGH SCHOOL, SYDNEY. HIS YOUTUBE CHANNEL HAS OVER 280,000 SUBSCRIBERS AND MORE THAN 14 MILLION VIEWS WORLDWIDE. EDDIE IS A MENTOR FOR EACH OF THE TEENAGE BOSSES.’