F is for finance

My Finance 101 is a financial education workshop for youth (particularly Secondary 4 and 5 students in Quebec and Grade 11 and 12 students in Ontario).

The workshop’s main goal is to teach youth about the benefits of solid financial management.

It’s given by a Desjardins professional expert or a qualified external partner invited by a teacher to speak to a school’s class. The teacher can request that any of the following subjects be discussed:

• Financial aid for post-secondary studies (government loan and bursary program)
• Budget
• Saving
• Credit rating
• Investments
• Transactions
• Security and fraud
• Buying a car

Workshops vary from 60 to 75 minutes based on the teacher’s needs and constraints. The course is interactive and consists of several individual and group activities.

Why invite My Finance 101 to your school?

The workshop:

• adapts to the academic context of both Quebec and Ontario
• provides an overview of basic knowledge to encourage youth to take control of their finances
• is taught for free by a financial expert
• doesn’t promote Desjardins services or products

How to invite My Finance 101 to your school

Contact your local Desjardins caisse to find out if it offers the workshop and the expert’s availabilities or ask your teacher to organize it for your class.

For youth ages 18 and up, don’t miss the Personal Finance: I’m in Charge educational program for young adults.

Did you know?

• 29% of youth use their credit card to pay for their studies.
• 40% of 14- to 21-year-olds have a credit card.
• The average credit card limit for people under 30 is $4,900.
• The average debt among 18- to 24-year-olds is $1,700 and $2,200 among 25- to 29-year-olds.

The Bank of Canada prints paper currency in large sheets of 45, which are then cut up into separate bills. The Bank of Canada distributes the bills to financial institutions.

New bills are printed to replace those that are torn or destroyed.

The Bank of Canada is not an ordinary bank in that you can't deposit your money there. It is responsible for the Canadian economy and financial system. It oversees all the caisses and banks in Canada.

Money circulates in a number of ways:

• From employers to employees
• From consumers to retailers
• From retailers to manufacturers
• From manufacturers to their employees
• From investors to borrowers
• And more

Salaries

• A salary is a sum of money received in exchange for work.
• To earn a salary, you must work, i.e., exchange your time and expertise for money.
• A salary can be calculated on a yearly, monthly, weekly, hourly, task, piecework or other basis.
• The money earned is paid to the worker by cheque or direct deposit.
• Direct deposit allows an employer to deposit employees' salaries directly into their accounts.

Deposits

A deposit is the act of putting money into an account. This can be done in a number of ways:

• At an ATM (cheque or cash)
• Through a teller at a financial institution (cheque or cash)
• By transferring money from one account to another

Withdrawals

A withdrawal is the act of taking money out of an account to pay bills or credit card debt, or make a mortgage payment or purchase. This can be done in a number of ways:

• At an ATM (cheque or cash)
• Through a teller at a financial institution (cheque or cash)
• By direct payment with an ATM card
• By cheque

Direct payment allows you to withdraw money from your account and deposit it directly into the account of the business from which you purchase a product or service. See our Debit card article.

Financial institutions generally impose a maximum daily withdrawal limit.

The deposited sum can sometimes be frozen, i.e., it is unavailable for transactions or withdrawal for several days.

Budget

A budget is a tool for comparing income with expenses. For more information, see our Budget article.

Cloning

Cloning is a fraud technique that consists of copying a debit or credit card in order to make purchases in someone else's name.

Compound interest

Compound interest refers to the money earned on an investment as well on all the interest the investment has generated in previous years.

Cooperative

A cooperative is an organization owned by its members. The services a cooperative provides are tailored to the needs of its owner-members, who also share in its profits.

Credit

Credit is a sum of money loaned to an individual for the purpose of carrying out a project, making a purchase or covering unexpected expenses. For more information, see our Usefulness of credit article.

Credit card

A credit card is a payment method. For more information, see our Credit cards article.

Credit limit

A credit limit is the maximum amount of credit that an individual applying for a loan can be granted.

Credit rating

A credit rating is a score reflecting an individual's capacity to pay back money owed. For more information, see our Credit rating article.

Credit report

A credit report contains information on a person's credit history, work experience, debt repayment habits, as well as a list of organizations or individuals who have requested information on the person's creditworthiness. For more information, see our Credit report article.

Debit card

Debit cards (also called ATM cards) can be used to carry out transactions at an ATM or make purchases in a store. The cardholder chooses a secret PIN that prevents others from using the card.

Dividend

A dividend refers to the profits attributed to each share in a company. The more shares a person holds, the greater proportion of the company's profits he or she will receive (or the more money he or she will lose if shares decrease in value).

Gross domestic product (GDP)

GDP is the value of all the goods and services produced in a country or region over a given period.

Inflation

Inflation refers to the rise in the average price of goods and services in a particular region or country.

Interest

Interest is the sum of money that must be paid in addition to an amount borrowed or an unpaid credit card balance. It is a percentage of the debt.

Interest rate

An interest rate is the percentage used to calculate interest.

Loan

A loan is a sum of money lent to an individual by a financial institution, family member, retail store or other source. For more information, see our Types of lenders article.

Member dividend

A member dividend is a sum of money a caisse pays its members, depending on its financial results. It is a share of the caisse's profits.

Profit

Profit is a company's revenues minus its expenses.

Purchasing power

Purchasing power is a measure of the amount of goods and services that can be obtained with a given currency or income.

Savings

Savings is the portion of a person's income that is set aside for a project or purchase rather than being spent. For more information, see our Savings article.

Share

A share is a certificate that proves that someone owns part of a company, i.e., is a shareholder. Shares can increase or decrease in value according to the company's profits, the economy, news that could affect the company and so on.

Stock market

The stock market is a financial market where people meet to buy and sell shares. Most transactions are now made through the Internet.