Local pupils score big in stock market simulation

If Fox wants to do a show called Are You a Smarter Investor Than a Fifth Grader, then Episcopal Day School has a class full of potential panelists.

Phelps Hunnicutt, 10, and Hampton Burnside, 11, earned a 50 percent return on their stock investments. They started with $100,000 and ended with $150,905 after 10 weeks. It wasn't real money, but it was certainly good practice.

The pupils at Episcopal Day School recently placed first in a regional stock market game for private schools. Their classmates landed second- and third-place honors and seven of their two-person teams were among the top 10 in northeast Georgia.

Each semester, the Georgia Council on Economic Education holds the Stock Market Game for public and private schools. The 10-week game teaches students about the stock market.

Phelps and Hampton researched their stocks through Google Finder and newspapers.

"We would look at different stocks and see if they were going up or down, and if we'd want to invest in them," Hampton said. "And if we thought they would make us money. We looked at the trend."

They also considered "what the company does to make money," Hampton said.

They invested in electric company FormFactor Inc., PowerShares DWA Emerging Markets Technical Leaders and Banco Santander.

"This whole world revolves around electricity, so we thought that an electric stock would be pretty good," Hampton said.

While most sold their stocks as soon as they went down, Phelps and Hampton held steady, said Ana Gerry, a fifth-grade teacher at Episcopal Day School.

"They were doing really complex math, but it was fun and engaging," Ms. Gerry said.

Despite their success, Phelps and Hampton don't want to make this a career move.

"I'll have stocks, but I doubt I'll be a stockbroker," Phelps said.

Reach LaTina Emerson at (706) 823-3227 or latina.emerson@augustachronicle.com.