Project Cost Estimate: Planning a Bookshelf Budget

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Career and Technical Education · Engineering / Robotics / Industrial Technology
SP-ENGR-010 · Free to print and use in your classroom · substituteplans.com
Page 2
Project Cost Estimate: Planning a Bookshelf
Budget
Career and Technical Education · Engineering / Robotics / Industrial Technology · Grades 8-11 · 50 minutes
Time needed
50 minutes (one class period)
Prep
Copy the 2-page worksheet (one per student). No other prep is needed.
Technology
None. Calculators are strongly recommended for arithmetic.
Student
independence
High. Students work alone, then compare totals with a partner.
Copies to make
One 2-page worksheet per student
Materials
Pencils, Worksheet, Calculators (recommended)
Goal for today: Students will plan lumber cuts on paper, compare two purchasing plans, and calculate a project cost
with sales tax from a provided price list.
Before the bell
☐ Copy the worksheet, one per student (2 pages).
☐ This is a planning and arithmetic lesson. Students must NOT build anything or use tools, saws, glue or
equipment today.
☐ Write on the board: Tax = subtotal × 0.08 (round to the nearest cent). Total = subtotal + tax.
☐ Keep the answer key (page after the worksheet) on your desk.
Say this to start
Good morning! Before anyone builds anything, they plan it and figure out what it will cost. Today you will do that on
paper for a simple bookshelf. You will find out how many boards you need, compare two buying options, and add up a
budget including sales tax. Nobody will use any tools or build anything. Calculators are fine, and every dollar answer
should have two decimal places.

SubstitutePlans.com
Career and Technical Education · Engineering / Robotics / Industrial Technology
SP-ENGR-010 · Free to print and use in your classroom · substituteplans.com
Page 3
Run of show
Minutes
What you do
What students do
0–5
Take attendance the way the school requires. Hand out the
worksheet.
Settle in and take out a pencil.
5–12
Read the passage aloud. Do the board example: “A $10.00
item with 8% tax: 10.00 × 0.08 = $0.80 tax, total $10.80.”
Follow along.
12–22
Tell students to complete questions 1–6 (cut list and board
plans).
Add lengths and compare two board plans.
22–37
Tell students to complete questions 7–9 (the budget).
Add the costs, calculate tax and compare
with the budget.
37–46
Tell students to complete questions 10–13 (the change
request).
Adjust the plan and suggest a way to stay
in budget.
46–50
Collect all worksheets and put them in a stack for the
teacher.
Hand in the worksheet.
If things go wrong
• If students ask about the width of saw cuts, tell them to ignore it for this lesson. Real builders add a little
extra.
• If a student gets a different total, ask them to check the sales tax rounding and whether they used the 6 ft
boards in questions 7–9.
• If a student wants to build or test anything, remind them that today is paper only.
Early finishers
• Make a shopping list for a different small project with three parts and estimate its cost.
• Find the price per foot of each board size from the price list and say which is cheaper per foot.
Support and challenge
• Support: Let students use a calculator for everything and skip question 6.
• Challenge: Ask students to find the cost of the original Plan B project if the tax rate were 9.5% instead of 8%.
Notes for the teacher (you fill this in)
Jot a few lines before you leave. A full Daily Sub Report is in the free Sub Survival Kit at SubstitutePlans.com.
How far the class got / what to pick up next:
Students who were especially helpful:
Anything the teacher should know: