NGPF Activity Bank
Budgeting
Spanish version
Teacher Tip Video
INTERACTIVE: Living Paycheck to Paycheck
30 min
Interactive: Spent
Part I: Set the Stage
Living paycheck to paycheck means that you need every bit of your paycheck to meet your
expenses which drains your balance back down to near $0 before your next paycheck arrives...and
then you start the cycle again. As a result, you don’t have savings to fall back on, every dollar
counts, and you’re faced with tough decisions on a daily basis. In this activity, you’ll experience
what it’s like to live paycheck to paycheck by playing the game Spent. At the start of the game,
you are faced with the following scenario:
Millions of Americans are unemployed. Now imagine you’re one of
them. Your savings are gone. You’ve lost your house. And you’re down
to your last $1,000. Can you make it through the month?
1. How do you feel about your situation? Do you think you can live 30 days with $1,000?
Explain.
I cannot live with $1000 for 30 days because i need food and rent.
Part II: Play the Game
2. Go to playspent.org. Click on Continue to Spent on the right side of the screen to start the
game and play it all the way through.
PRO TIP: Keep an eye on the left-hand bar which keeps track of your progress and includes
3 options to get more money during the month:
Part III: Your Experience
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3. Did you make it through the entire month? If so, how much money did you have left? If not,
on what day did you run out of money?
I made it through the month and had $99 left.
4. Think about your emotional state as you played the game and select the top 5 adjectives
below that best describe what you felt.
❏ Calm ❏ Disappointed ❏ Embarrassed ❏ Excited
❏ FOMO ❏ Frustrated/Angry ❏ Hopeful ❏ Hopeless
❏ Motivated ❏ Proud ❏ Relieved ❏ Sad
❏ Scared ❏ Self-sufficient ❏ Shocked/Surprised ❏ Stressed
❏ Other _______________________________
5. How did some of your initial decisions (job, health insurance, where to live) impact the rest
of your month in ways you did not expect?
I did not expect that asking for better pay can get me fired.
6. Did you ever reach out to a friend for help? Why or why not?
No, because i would need to pay them later.
7. Describe a scenario in which you thought you were making a good decision but there was
still a negative outcome.
Letting a friend stay in the house or use your car and not paying for gas or damage.
8. Describe a scenario that forced you to wrestle with your values. What was your ultimate
decision and how do you feel about it? Explain.
Taking money away from kid because kids deserve their own money.
9. Did you ever use any of the 3 options on the left-hand side of the game to get more
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money?
a. If yes, which one(s) and why?
b. If no, why not?
I used donate plasma to get some extra money because it was the easiest option.
10. What is your main takeaway from playing Spent?
There is always going to be something that needs to get paid.
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