Lincoln Elementary students also recently placed in InvestWrite writing competition
SALT LAKE CITY – March 10, 2021 – Utah State Treasurer David Damschen will honor students on the first place team in the elementary division of the Fall 2020 Stock Market Game tomorrow at Nibley Elementary School.
The Office of State Treasurer is hosting a pizza party in Mr. Michael Torrey’s classroom at 1 p.m. on Thursday, March 11 in celebration of the two sixth grade students on the winning team, Somnaang Udy and Alexander Droge, and their advisor, Mr. Torrey. During the celebration, Treasurer Damschen will present the winners with their awards, including my529 account certificates, plaques and Stock Market Game swag.
The Stock Market Game is a ten-week simulation of Wall Street trading that provides a framework for teaching Utah students about the U.S. economy and financial markets. The game is designed for classroom use to help students understand investing, the costs and benefits involved in economic decision making, the sources and uses of capital and other related economic concepts in an integrated manner with other curriculum.
During the game, students invest a hypothetical $100,000 in common stocks and diversified investment funds on the major exchanges. Teams are ranked based on their total equity at the end of the game. The first place elementary team ended the game with $129,792.01 in total equity. The students competed against 54 other teams in their division.
Cache County students also recently placed in the statewide InvestWrite writing competition. InvestWrite provides students with an opportunity to demonstrate what they learned while playing the Stock Market Game using written communication. Lincoln Elementary students Rosalie Munsters, Clay Bodrero and Caroline Friedrich placed first, second and third in the elementary division of the Utah Spring 2020 InvestWrite competition. The three winners were in Rosanne Porter’s fifth grade class at the time of the competition and received their awards in December 2020.
The Office of State Treasurer typically hosts an awards banquet to honor the winners of the Stock Market Game. To help slow the community spread of COVID-19, the awards banquets for the spring and fall 2020 games were cancelled. In lieu of these events, the office has worked with teachers to arrange more limited events.
In addition to celebrations like the pizza party at Nibley Elementary School, photos of the winning students and teachers statewide will be shared on the office’s social media. The Stock Market Game winners had the opportunity to record a short video describing what they learned while playing the game and their plans to invest in the future. These videos also will be posted on social media and to the office’s website.
“The Stock Market Game and InvestWrite competitions pique student interest in important concepts taught in the classroom by adding an element of competition,” Treasurer Damschen said. “I appreciate the outstanding efforts of teachers and students to improve financial knowledge.”
For more information about the Stock Market Game and InvestWrite writing competition and a complete list of winners, visit: treasurer.utah.gov/stock-market-game.
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