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Create a Mock Stock Portfolio Project
Grades 9-12 · 4 weeks
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A mock stock portfolio project lets students practice investing decisions without risking real money. Starting with a virtual budget, such as $10,000, students choose 5 stocks and track how their values change over 4 weeks. The goal is not to prove who can pick the best stock, but to learn how prices, returns, risk, and diversification work together. This project connects math, economics, and real-world decision making in a clear classroom format.
Students should record the number of shares bought, purchase price, weekly price, total value, and weekly return for each stock. A returns graph helps show whether the portfolio is gaining or losing value over time, while an allocation pie chart shows how the money is divided among stocks or sectors. Sector mix is important because owning companies from different industries can reduce the impact of one weak area. By the end of the project, students can explain both the numbers and the reasoning behind their portfolio choices.
Key Facts
- Portfolio value = sum of all stock values + remaining cash
- Stock value = number of shares x current share price
- Weekly return = (ending value - beginning value) / beginning value x 100%
- Total return = (final portfolio value - starting portfolio value) / starting portfolio value x 100%
- Allocation percent = amount invested in one stock / total portfolio value x 100%
- Sector mix compares how much of the portfolio is invested in industries such as technology, healthcare, finance, energy, and consumer goods.
Vocabulary
- Mock portfolio
- A practice investment portfolio that uses fictional money to track real or simulated stock performance.
- Stock
- A share of ownership in a company that can rise or fall in value.
- Return
- The percent gain or loss on an investment over a specific time period.
- Diversification
- The practice of spreading investments across different companies or sectors to reduce risk.
- Sector
- A group of companies that belong to the same part of the economy, such as technology or healthcare.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Using all $10,000 on one stock, which is wrong because the project requires 5 stocks and does not show diversification.
- Calculating return using the ending value as the denominator, which is wrong because percent return should compare the change to the beginning value.
- Ignoring remaining cash, which is wrong because uninvested virtual cash is still part of the total portfolio value.
- Judging success only by the highest final value, which is wrong because a strong analysis also explains risk, sector mix, and the reasons behind gains or losses.
Practice Questions
- 1 A student buys 10 shares of Stock A at 55. What is the stock value after one week, and what is the weekly return?
- 2 A mock portfolio starts at 10,640. Calculate the total dollar gain and the total percent return.
- 3 A portfolio has 3 technology stocks and 2 consumer goods stocks. Explain whether this portfolio is well diversified by sector and suggest one change that could improve it.