Bachelorette & Budget Project Freebie!

It is the end of the May! Holy Moly! I can't believe that I am almost done with my first year of teaching! There are 12 days of school left (I am not counting)! My seventh graders are CRAY! They are turning into full blown eighth graders! I was reminiscing about what I was like in seventh grade, and I was JUST like them.
Do you remember your first year? Did you ever think, "the students probably thing I am a MEGA 'you know what'"? I had that thought most of the year and I felt really bad. However, now I am really seeing that me being hard on them has paid off! It is almost like they like me for it. Every time I am walking in the hallway they always greet me with a, "HI MS. KANE!" I love it, but hate when I have to become a you know what when they start slipping on that slippery slope of the end of the year madness.

I am one of the subjects in the seventh grade that has an EOC (End of Course Exam). It was bittersweet when I found out that my EOC was going to be one of the first administered. Of course, I wanted my kiddos to have more time to study, but at the same time, I wanted to rip it off like a band-aid and get it over with.
It took three days for all my students to complete the test. This is considered their final, so I had to come up with something for them to do for the rest of the year. I came up with a BRILLIANT IDEA!

Personal Finance is part of my curriculum, but not a part of the Civics EOC. Students created a budget based off of the scenarios I gave them (i.e. You dropped out of high school and worked at a department store. You are reliable and contribute a lot of ideas, so you got promoted. You are now the manager and you make 2,571 dollars a month and your company pays for your health insurance benefits.) Students had to take their scenarios and find a house, car, and other optional bills to create a monthly budget. I have attached my copy of the project as a Freebie!
Here are some pictures of the projects students did:

As for something not education related! Are any of you avid Bachelorette watchers?! My friends and I created a bracket for Andi's season of Bachelorette! I love her! I love how she is so strong, confident, and takes the guys into consideration when telling Chris Harrison that Chris Bukowski could not come on to the show. As far as Chris B goes, how can you possibly have any expectations when you try to get on Andi's season that way? She is clearly not welcoming B.S. Go away! Way to make a fool of yourself.

Let's talk about the first impression rose. Really, Andi? Giving the rose to someone you would not normally go for? I mean, I get it. In my opinion, the interaction was awkward.

This first episode was really dry for me. The only drama was when Chris B. was trying to sneak his way onto the show. I am hoping the drama and excitement picks up on the second episode.

Here is the Bachelorette Bracket that I created! Keep me in the know of how you're doing if you choose to participate with a group of girlfriends!