Students at two Canyons District schools know how to make sense – and cents – out of the stock market. Teams from Midvale and Crescent View middle schools won three of the top five spots in a competition that teaches students about the American economic system by simulating the bull-and-bear world of Wall Street trading.

In this year’s statewide Stock Market Game, which is overseen by the Utah Council on Economic Education, Midvale Middle won first place in its age division by managing a 17 percent return on the market value of their mock stock portfolio.  The second-place Crescent View team saw a 14.4 percent return, and the fifth-place team from CVMS finished with an 8.2 percent return. The Canyons District teams competed against more than 170 student teams from schools throughout Utah.

Teacher Mindy Robison helped the Midvale team – made up of students Luis Trinidad and Eddie Calata – achieve the No. 1 spot. In all, the final tally of the Midvale team’s portfolio was $123,778.  The teams from CVMS, whose faculty adviser is Kaylene Barney, finished the game with $121,259 and $115,038, respectively.  The second-place team members are Angel Ninh, Valencia Valdez, and Emmie Nye, and the fifth-place team members are Alex Nguyen and Taylor Dimond.

For 10 weeks starting Oct. 12, classrooms are abuzz with discussions about the investments students make with a hypothetical $100,000. Under a teacher’s tutelage, students work as teams to “invest” in common stocks on the New York and American Stock Exchanges and on the Nasdaq market. Each day throughout the contest, students receive portfolios highlighting their holdings, margin interest and team rankings. The winning teams, who will be honored at a banquet on Friday, Jan. 14 at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building, earned the most on their investments.