&KDSWHUEnrichment:
Financial Spreadsheets
Objective To use financial spreadsheets to organize and analyze financial data
A spreadsheet is a software program that organizes data and performs
calculations. Formulas are used to give the computer instructions for carrying
out the calculations.
A spreadsheet is a table with columns and rows. Usually the rows are named
with numbers and the columns are named with letters. The intersection of a
row and a column is called a cell. Almost any kind of information can be
put in a cell: words, numbers, or formulas. If you have a spreadsheet
program, use it to create the spreadsheet in this lesson.
Some seventh-graders want to
raise money for hurricane relief
by making and selling tie-dyed
T-shirts. They use a spreadsheet
to plan the project. First, they
enter information about the
items they need to buy.
Next, they use a formula to find
the cost of each item. In cell D4,
they enter the formula B4*C4.
This multiplies the value in cell
B4 (number of cans of dye to
buy) by the value in cell C4
(price per can) to get the total
cost for the dye.
They write the formula into
rows 4 –12 of column D. The
program automatically
multiplies the number in the
“Price Per Unit” column by
the number in the “Amount
to Buy” column.
Cell D4 means the cell
in column D, row 4.