A streamlined course of accounting basics including the essentials of double-entry accounting, financial statements, recording of business transactions, adjusting and closing entries, and the accounting for cash, receivables, payables, long-life assets, inventories, and payroll. A review of financial statements for partnerships and corporations is included.

Suggested age

High school

Prerequisites

None

Objectives

Upon completion of this course, students should be able to:
1) Know the accounting equation and how to record business transactions .
2) Record adjusting, closing and reversing entries.
3) Create basic financial statements from accounting data.
4) Analyze the components of basic financial statements.
5) Use the double-entry accounting system to record transactions for cash, receivables, payables, long-life assets, inventories, and payroll.
Understand the difference between sole proprietorships, partnerships, and corporations

Rationale and Required Materials

Small businesses, large industry, and charitable organizations all use accounting principles to evaluate their success and professionals ranging from accounting clerks and bookkeepers to business owners need to know these principles. This course is designed to provide students in the home schooling community with the tools for understanding and using basic accounting principles.

Curriculum

The text required for the course is Barron’s Business Review Series: Accounting, Fifth Edition, Peter J. Eisen, publisher: Barron’s Educational Series, Inc., ISBN-10: 0764135473, and ISBN-13: 978-0764135477. Approximate cost: $15.00 Students should purchase this text before the first day of class.
Additionally, students are required to purchase a workbook provided by instructor, $30.00, and download a free version of Simple Start, an accounting program by Intuit, the makers of QuickBooks, to install and use on their home computer.