Taking Stock Lesson Pack
Here you'll find all 8 lessons of stage 0 on one page, each with its learning goal, class time, a question for discussion and the quiz answer for your preparation. You can start right away.
Why this pack
Stage 0 is the natural starting point. No prior knowledge is needed, and before the first euro is invested, students take an honest look at their own money: what comes in, what goes out, what's left? Recommended from age 13, more on the For teachers page.
Matching worksheet: Budget check (fillable PDF): as homework or to close out the unit.
How to use the pack: either as one 45 minute unit where you look at all 8 lessons briefly, go deeper into 2 or 3 together and give the rest as homework. Or as 8 short openers of 10 to 15 minutes, spread over several classes.
The 8 lessons
1. Before you invest a single euro
Learning objective: After this lesson you can use three questions to decide for yourself whether investing fits you right now.
Class time: about 6 min. (2 min. reading + discussion)
Discussion question: Why is paying off an overdraft often better than investing?
Show quiz answer key (for prep)
Situation: You have saved €2,000 but still carry €1,500 in overdraft debt at 12% interest and have no emergency fund. A friend suggests starting an ETF savings plan right away.
Correct answer: Pay off the overdraft and build an emergency fund first, then invest. Why: Close both missing pieces first. Otherwise any market dip turns into a forced sale.
2. The emergency fund
Learning objective: After this lesson you can work out how big your own emergency fund should be.
Class time: about 6 min.
Discussion question: Is your emergency fund based on your income or your expenses?
Show quiz answer key (for prep)
Situation: You have no debt and would like to invest. But your account only holds one month of expenses as a cushion.
Correct answer: Build it up to three to six months of expenses first, before investing larger amounts. Why: Without that cushion, any investment becomes a forced-sale source in an emergency, often at the worst moment.
3. Expensive debt first
Learning objective: After this lesson you can explain why paying off expensive debt is often the best investment.
Class time: about 6 min.
Discussion question: Why can't you simply compare the return of paying off debt with an investment return?
Show quiz answer key (for prep)
Situation: You owe €3,000 at 10% overdraft interest and are considering investing that money in an ETF that has historically returned about 7% a year instead.
Correct answer: Pay off the debt first, because a certain 10% cost beats an uncertain 7% return. Why: Paying down debt gives you a guaranteed, tax-free return equal to the interest rate: hard to beat.
4. What's left at the end of the month
Learning objective: After this lesson you can work out your own savings rate from fixed costs, variable costs and annual costs.
Class time: about 5 min.
Discussion question: Which number in your savings plan can you influence for certain?
Show quiz answer key (for prep)
Situation: You want to know how much you can save each month, and you only add up your fixed costs like rent.
Correct answer: Variable expenses and a reserve for annual costs belong too, or the savings rate gets overstated. Why: Only all three numbers together give you the honest, sustainable savings rate.
5. Insurance before wealth
Learning objective: After this lesson you can judge which risks you should insure before you start building wealth.
Class time: about 5 min.
Discussion question: Why does insurance make sense even though it costs money on average?
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Situation: You have a portfolio doing well, but no liability insurance.
Correct answer: A single major liability claim can wipe out a portfolio built up over years. Why: Insure existential risks before taking on market risk with the rest of your money.
6. Goal and time horizon
Learning objective: After this lesson you can set a time frame for each savings goal and choose a matching way to invest it.
Class time: about 5 min.
Discussion question: Why does the risk of a loss fall the longer you invest?
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Situation: You need this money in two years for a down payment, but are considering putting it in stocks.
Correct answer: With a two-year horizon, this money does not belong in volatile assets. Why: The time horizon determines the right asset, not the other way around.
7. How much loss can you actually take
Learning objective: After this lesson you can judge how much loss you can really handle, financially and emotionally.
Class time: about 5 min.
Discussion question: What's the difference between risk capacity and risk tolerance?
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Situation: On paper you could easily handle a 50% loss, but a 10% drop already keeps you up at night wanting to sell.
Correct answer: The lower of the two applies. Here, your emotional limit of 10%. Why: Risk tolerance has two parts, financial and emotional, and the smaller value sets the actually bearable risk level.
8. When investing doesn't make sense for you yet
Learning objective: After this lesson you can recognize when investing isn't right for you yet.
Class time: about 5 min.
Discussion question: Roughly what does a year of waiting cost, and what can it bring?
Show quiz answer key (for prep)
Situation: A friend in an acute financial crisis, with no savings and heavy debt, asks whether they should put money into crypto now to get out of the hole faster.
Correct answer: No, investing is the wrong decision in this situation. Why: With no savings and heavy debt, the basics need fixing first, long before investing is even on the table.
After this pack
Direct continuation into Stage 1 (Fundamentals) under Understanding investing. For a hands-on exercise with no real money, the paper-trading simulator fits well.