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Managing credit card payments

Updated

Students use a simple formula to calculate the true cost of items bought with a credit card.

Big idea

When you don’t pay off the full amount that you owe on a credit card, you’ll have to pay interest on the money you still owe.

Essential questions

  • How do interest rates affect credit card payments? 
  • How do you calculate the cost of a purchase including interest? 

Objectives

  • Learn about making informed choices about credit offers
  • Calculate payments for credit card purchases based on the principal and interest rate

What students will do

  • Calculate and analyze how monthly payments on a credit card change based on the principal and interest rate. 
  • Reflect on ways to reduce the amount owed on a credit card. 

Download activity

Teacher guide

cfpb_building_block_activities_managing-credit-card-payments_guide.pdf

Student materials

cfpb_building_block_activities_managing-credit-card-payments_worksheet.pdf

Note: Please remember to consider your students’ accommodations and special needs to ensure that all students are able to participate in a meaningful way.