Teacher Introduces 3rd Grade Students To Real World Problems By Charging Them 'Rent'
She's teaching her students financial literacy in a low stakes environment.
Prostock-studio | Shutterstock A common complaint among students is that they leave school without a solid knowledge of what goes on in the “real world.” While they may be able to ace a chemistry test or quickly finish their literature homework, not many students learn practical skills that will help them outside of school.
One teacher aimed to change that.
A North Carolina-based elementary school teacher gave her students a taste of life after school by charging them rent.
Shelby Lattimore, a third-grade teacher in Charlotte, North Carolina, taught her students some “hard life lessons” early on.
“I am going to take your money,” she told the children in a now-viral TikTok video.
Lattimore further elaborated to her students just exactly what she was doing. “You have to pay me rent,” she explained. “You have to pay me for that nice desk you’ve got, and that nice blue chair that you are sitting in.”
In the video, Lattimore called the students up one by one and collected $5 in rent from them. The money was not real, and it was earned from completing tasks around the classroom.
Lattimore was serious about the rent. “If your rent is late, that’s a fine,” she told students.
She can be seen in other videos collecting fines from students who were late with their payments.
One student stated, “I don’t want to,” when instructed to pay rent. “Then you’re getting evicted,” Lattimore responded.
Lattimore used the rent collection as a chance to also teach her students about inflation.
At the start of 2024, Lattimore added a new element to her rent routine and taught students yet another important money lesson.
“Since we are in a new year, it is 2024, we are starting off the new year with some new stuff,” she said in another TikTok. “I like to keep you on your toes, so I’m going to change it up. Has anybody ever heard of the word inflation?”
After plenty of chatter from the classroom, Lattimore explained the concept of inflation to the students. “So, if you pay something, and it’s inflated, is it going to be the same price, or is it going to be different?” she asked. “Different. Is it going to be higher or is it going to be lower?”
The students realized the unfortunate truth and could be heard yelling, “No!”
“Ms. Lattimore is inflating your rent,” she said before she announced that rent would now be $7.
It’s a good idea to teach kids about money.
According to experts, Ms. Lattimore is on the right track with her curriculum. Eric Landolt, the head of family advisory and art and collecting at UBS Global Wealth Management, told CNBC, “Financial literacy should be a basic skill, a basic skill in the sense of like reading or writing or doing … something in a way that should be brought to everyone in any circumstance.”
Furthermore, Seth Wunder, the chief investment officer at Acorns, said six is a good age to begin teaching children about money. “This is the age children are starting to understand math at school and are able to comprehend the consequences of ‘if it’s gone, it’s gone’ and setting aside money for things they really want,” he stated.
Ultimately, Lattimore is doing her students a service. While many leave school feeling like they do not have a good grasp of finances, she is teaching her students financial literacy from a very young age. This will serve them well in the future.
Mary-Faith Martinez is a writer for YourTango who covers entertainment, news, and human interest topics.