Budget to Market

Overview

This 60-minute open-book business assessment checks Year 9 Commerce (Accounting + Economics) understanding of financial planning, income statements, key economic concepts, investment, consumer rights/obligations. Students use their workbook to define terms, complete scenarios, and answer short responses.

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Learning intentions

• WALT use accounting terms to explain income statements, budget basics, and profit/loss.
• WALT apply the accounting equation (Assets = Liabilities + Equity) to a simple scenario.
• WALT explain needs vs wants, scarcity, choice, and opportunity cost using correct economic meaning.
• WALT distinguish investment from non-investment and apply consumer contract rights/obligations linked to Fair Trading Act and Consumer Guarantees Act.
• WALT recognise relevant tax types.

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Success criteria

• I can define key accounting and economics terms accurately using workbook wording.
• I can show working for calculations (profit/loss, accounting equation).
• I can explain consumer rights/obligations (valid contract elements and “three Rs”) and link laws to scenarios.

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Curriculum links

• Economic Activity: Financial Education — Purpose of financial planning (Practices): create and monitor a budget and simple financial plan.
• Economic Activity: Financial Education — gather financial information and use it to make and justify financial choices.
• Economic Activity: Financial Education — Calculate total payments and understand the effect of interest (used here through “income/expenses/profit/loss” and budget logic).
• Economic Activity: Accounting and Economics understanding in local contexts, focusing on accurate terminology and application to real-life scenarios.
• Key competencies: Managing self (organisation for open-book test), Thinking (reasoning with accounting/economic concepts), Relating to others (consumer rights scenarios), Using language/symbols (equations and model labelling).

Lesson structure (60 minutes total)

1. 0–5 min · Assessment setup. Teacher confirms open-book rules: use workbook for terms and definitions, but write answers in your own words; show working for calculations.

• Students read the student instructions and highlight where they will need working/terms.

2. 5–10 min · Quick terms check (non-marked). Teacher reminds students to use correct meanings: investment/capital (capital economic = human-made tools).

• Students do a rapid skim of the workbook pages for the required terms.

3. 10–45 min · Open-book written assessment. Teacher monitors quietly; no help with answers. Students complete all sections in order.

• Students answer Sections A–C, E, and F, using workbook wording where possible.

4. 45–55 min · Finish strong + check working. Teacher prompts students to check equations, totals, and law names/“three Rs”.

• Students self-check against the success criteria and add any missed steps.

5. 55–60 min · Submission. Teacher collects scripts and confirms word-for-word clarity for explanations.

• Students ensure name/date/answers are complete.

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Assessment (Open-book written assessment) — 60 marks

Student instructions (hand out):

• Use your workbook for terms and definitions.
• Write clearly and show working for any calculation.
• Use correct economic meaning for investment and capital.
• For explanations: use the workbook key phrases (e.g., “opportunity cost = next best alternative”).
• This is an open-book written test. No talking during the test.

Section A: Accounting key terms & income statement basics (12 marks)

1. Define income statement. (2)
2. Define income and give one example. (2)
3. Define expenses and give one example. (2)
4. Define budget (and what it does). (2)
5. Define profit/loss in accounting meaning. (2)
6. State one reason budgets help individuals/businesses manage financial plans. (2)

Section B: Accounting equation + scenario profit/loss (14 marks)

7. Write the accounting equation: Assets = ____ + ____. (2)
8. Define liabilities and equity (capital). (4)
9. Scenario: At the end of a month, a small business has Assets $18,000. Liabilities owed to outsiders $7,500. Calculate Equity (capital). (3)
10. Scenario continued: During the month, Income $25,000 and Expenses $23,400. Calculate Actual profit/loss. (5)

• Show working.

Section C: Economics — needs vs wants, scarcity, means, opportunity cost (12 marks)

11. Explain needs vs wants (use the workbook idea). (3)
12. Define unlimited wants and limited means (scarcity). (3)
13. Define choice and explain it comes from scarcity. (2)
14. Define opportunity cost and use the formula: “next best alternative”. (2)
15. Example explanation: If you spend money on a movie instead of saving, what is the opportunity cost? (2)

Section D: Investment vs non-investment (6 marks)

20. Define investment economics (purchase of goods not consumed today but used in future to create wealth). (2)
21. Classify each as investment or non-investment and justify briefly using the workbook meaning:

• (a) A business buys new equipment used for several years. (2)
• (b) A household buys groceries for today’s meal. (2)

Section E: Consumer rights/obligations (16 marks)

26. Explain the three Rs in consumer guarantees: refund, repair, replace. (4)
27. Describe elements of a valid contract and why they matter. (4)
28. Give examples of consumer rights under the Fair Trading Act. (4)
29. Explain consumer obligations when entering contracts. (4)

Mark allocation

• Total: 60 marks (GST optional if included: +2 could be added, or teacher can keep test at 60 by not scoring Q25)

Teacher page: marking notes (answer key + guidance)

• A1 income statement: report of income and expenses leading to profit/loss. (2)

• A2 income: money earned (sales/revenue). (2)

• A3 expenses: costs incurred (rent, wages, utilities). (2)

• A4 budget: plan of income and expenses for a period to manage finances. (2)

• A5 profit/loss: income minus expenses; positive = profit, negative = loss. (2)

• A6 reason: helps plan/monitor financial outcomes, avoids overspending. (2)

• B7 equation: Assets = Liabilities + Equity. (2)

• B8 liabilities: debts owed to outsiders; equity/capital: amount owners own. (4)

• B9 equity = 18,000 − 7,500 = 10,500. (3)

• B10 profit/loss = 25,000 − 23,400 = 1,600 profit. (5)

• C11 needs vs wants: needs are necessary; wants are desired; unlimited wants. (3)

• C12 unlimited wants + limited means = scarcity/choice. (3)

• C13 choice: deciding how to use limited resources because of scarcity. (2)

• C14 opportunity cost = next best alternative; explain in words. (2)

• C15 opportunity cost: money/benefit you give up (next best alternative, e.g., saving toward something). (2)

• D16 labels: resources/labour → producer sector; income → household sector; consumption spending → producer sector; goods & services → household sector (1 each; total 4).

• D17 resources/labour: households provide; producers receive. (2)

• D18 real flows: goods/services and resources; money flows: payments (e.g., income and spending). (2)

• D19 interdependence: households and producers rely on each other (resources drive production; spending/ income circulates). (2)

• E20 investment: goods not consumed today, used later to create wealth; capital economic = human-made tools. (2)

• E21 (a) investment: equipment used in future. (2) (b) non-investment: groceries consumed today. (2)

• F21 valid contract 6 requirements (accept any wording matching workbook): offer, acceptance, intention to create legal relations, consideration, capacity, legality of object. (6)

• F22 misleading ad: Fair Trading Act 1986; applies before purchase; misleading or unfair practices. (3)

• F23 faulty goods: Consumer Guarantees Act 1993; three Rs: repair/replace/refund. (5)

• F24 buyer obligation: pay in full and on time; sellers right: set price or repossess if unpaid; include caveat emptor where appropriate. (2)

• F25 GST optional: GST = 15% of 80 = 12. (2)

Differentiation

• Support: Provide a printed “term bank” strip (no answers) for definitions and law names; allow students to underline workbook phrases before writing.
• Support: Sentence starters for explanations (e.g., “Opportunity cost is the next best alternative because…”).
• Extension: For Section F explanations, require a second sentence linking the scenario to the act using workbook wording.
• EAL/SEN: Permit using the exact workbook phrasing for definitions; check that calculations show at least one line of working.

Assessment rubric (brief, explanation-focused)

• 0–1: Answer is unclear or missing key terms.
• 2: Uses some correct concepts but lacks accurate workbook meaning or working.
• 3: Accurate, uses correct terminology and explains the idea clearly with correct reasoning (e.g., opportunity cost / interdependence / law link).