FinanceLevel 3 · 14–16 hrs11 sessions · 75–90 minutesTeam 4–6 (5 is ideal; see roles)Coming next
Tell me the best way to pay for a $12,000 printer (cash, a loan or a lease), and show me what each does to my cash over the next 2 years.
Client scenario
Welcome to the analysis team. Signal Hill Signs (fictional) makes shop signs, window graphics and banners. A big new client wants a year-round printing contract, and the shop can only take it with a $12,000 wide-format printer. The owner has three ways to pay for it and has hired your team to compare them.
Client: The Owner (the teacher in role).
Which way of paying for the printer (cash from savings, a 3-year bank loan or a 3-year lease) is best for the shop, given its cash, its slow months and its rule about keeping money for emergencies?
Roles
Lead Analyst
Loan & Lease Analyst
Cash-Flow Analyst
Risk Analyst
Quality Lead
The twist: Part 1, Rate Notice (H3): the bank raises its quoted rate by 2 percentage points, from 8.00% to 10.00%, before the loan is signed. Part 2, Client Call: the big new client says it will pay 60 days later than agreed: work done in month 1 is paid in month 4, not month 2, and every payment after that is 2 months later too. Materials are still paid when the work is done.
Standards mapped
Mapped means the framework is verified and the teacher confirms the evidence. It isn't a claim that a project meets a standard.
NACE (Dec 2025)
ED Employability Skills Framework
CA Standards for Career Ready Practice
CCSS ELA
CCSS Math
Not tagged in this brief: NGSS SEP, ISTE Students.
Safety, devices and privacy
Made-up numbers only. Every quote, rate and cash figure is fictional. Students never use, open or log in to a real bank, loan, lease, credit or payment account, and never enter their own or anyone's real financial details anywhere.
No advice to real people. The memo recommends an option for the fictional shop, based on the model. It never tells a real person what to do with their money, and it avoids promises such as "guaranteed", "risk-free" or "can't lose".
No real applications. Students don't contact real banks or leasing companies, or fill in real credit applications or online quote forms.
School devices only. No phones, including as calculators, and no personal accounts.
No photos of students. No student names or personal information on any deliverable. Sign work "Team [#]".
Follow the school's usual classroom rules.
Creative Dad On the Job is in-class client project work. It is not a paid, off-campus On-the-Job Training (OJT) placement.
Budget levels
Totals and Amazon links come from the materials sheet.
Materials links go to Amazon. Prices are estimates and may change. As an Amazon Associate, Creative Dad Company earns from qualifying purchases.
Quick Start
Digital downloads only. $0 to buy. Printing is noted separately.
$0 to buy. Printing $4–$7, noted separately.
Print-only version workable
Student time: one class period, one day.
Teacher prep / build-ahead: separate from student time.
Scale it
The default plan is one class period on a single day.
Scale back: Fit it into a shorter period, use fewer effects, or run a demo instead of a build.
Scale up: Add one extra effect, or spread the share-out across another day.
Ambiance video
Ambiance video coming soon from Creative Dad Studio
Classroom timer or wall clockBorrow or school has1$0
Full Experience
Up to $25 per class (class of about 30, 6 groups).
About $4–$7 per class (class of about 30, 6 groups). Fits under $25 per class.
Student time: one day.
Teacher prep / build-ahead: separate from student time.
Scale it
The default plan is one school day.
Scale back: Fit the build into one period with fewer effects.
Scale up: Spread the work across days, or add more effects.
Total Transformation
The bigger kit, priced per class (class of about 30, 6 groups).
About $9–$15 per class (class of about 30, 6 groups).
Student time: one day (one session, one-day event).
Teacher prep / build-ahead: separate from student time.
Scale it
The default plan is one session, a one-day event.
Scale back: Shorten the event, or run a demo for a smaller audience.
Scale up: Spread the build and the event across days, or invite a bigger audience.
Graph paper pad (hand-drawn cash chart)Optional1 pad$5–8Amazon
The rest of the brief is part of a subscription
Sessions, role duties, deliverables, materials, free tools, and the teacher setup use the same Creative Dad account as the project library. There is no separate student login.