Banking made easy! This B1-level lesson plan takes your students through the steps to open a bank account, helping them pick up useful financial terms and boosting their confidence. With a fun mix of listening, speaking, and real-life activities, they’ll get the hang of banking tasks in no time!
Let’s talk money once again💸. Last semester, I taught a short finance course to an A2/B1-level group. Unfortunately, I only managed to prepare one original lesson plan (Money Management) because I was really pressed for time. This semester, I’m teaching the same course to a different group, and I figured it’d be better to come up with a fresh lesson plan – plus, I could pick up some new ideas myself. So, I ended up creating this class about how to open bank accounts step-by-step.
This lesson is packed with banking terms from a short video by Street Law Inc called Banking Basics: Steps to Opening a Bank Account. If you have some finance fans in your class, make sure to check out the end of the post for the presentation, lesson plan, and teacher’s notes.
Warmer: Do you have a bank account?
This lesson begins with a casual chat to get everyone warmed up for a deeper dive later on. Students talk about whether they have bank accounts and why banking matters. Nowadays, it seems like almost everyone has a bank account, so we’ve all got some experience with it. It’s a straightforward way to tap into what we already know while introducing the basics of banking.
Listening for gist: Why is it a good idea to open a bank account?
To wrap up the warm-up, let’s think about why it’s a good idea to open a bank account. This question will get everyone thinking about the perks of banking, like earning interest, keeping your money safe, and exploring investment options. Then we’ll check out the first part of the video Banking Basics: Steps to Opening a Bank Account (from 0:00 to 0:41) and see if any of the answers match what we just discussed. The video is super easy to follow since it’s packed with animations and highlights important terms, making it easier to catch the key points.
Before moving on with the video, show a list of steps needed to open a bank account. Students can team up and arrange the steps in the right order. Then, play the rest of the video (0:42 – 2:02) and go over the answers. Honestly, I wasn’t too sure about this part of the class because the steps in the video seemed pretty off. But it sparked a big discussion in my classroom, and it actually turned out great since the students debated the video and pointed out how ridiculous some of the ideas were. Check it out and see if you agree with them!
Discussion: Steps to Opening a Bank Account
- Choose a bank or financial institution
- Review account options and read terms and conditions to choose the type of account you want to open
- Choose the type of account you want to open
- Ask the bank what forms of ID they accept
- Ask if a minimum deposit is required
- If you don’t have one, obtain a government-issued photo ID
- Get your money ready to be deposited
- Go to the bank’s website or visit a bank branch in person
Vocabulary: Key Banking Terms
Even though the steps to open a bank account in the video are a bit jumbled, there are so many cool finance words that your students will definitely find interesting. I picked out ten words that are super important for getting a grasp on the topic. Students match these words to their definitions. Then put the vocabulary in context, and tell them to fill in the summary of the video with the previously mentioned words. Watch the video in its entirety for the final time and check the answers.
Speaking: How do you open a bank account in your country?
Finally, it’s time for a practical element of the class. Students come up with a simple guide on how to open a bank account in their country! For me, it was a mix of Spanish, Colombian, and Peruvian viewpoints. It really got us diving into the nitty-gritty of what you need to do to open a bank account in Spain, whether you’re a local or an expat.
Wrap up the class with a fun speaking activity where students pair up and use a simple guide to explain how to open a bank account to a friend.
If you’re looking to spark some conversations with your students about banking and useful money skills, this lesson is for you! Just click the links below to grab the presentation, worksheet, and teacher’s notes.
How do you teach essential life skills such as opening a bank account?
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