Warm-up
Name one cost linked to your project (materials, travel to Work Experience, printing, tools). Is it a number you could add up later, or only a note to read?
Something Real here means the real project or task you are costing in LCA. If you do not have one yet, use a fallback for today: Work Experience kit, small enterprise materials, or Practical Achievement supplies.
What you are making
You will open a blank sheet and build {{code:05_project_budget}} inside {{code:05_budget}}. This file is portfolio evidence for ICT2 Key Assignment work. You will keep adding to it when formulas and charts arrive.
Before you start
- You can open OneDrive or Google Drive with your school account.
- You have a Project Portfolio folder with a {{code:05_budget}} sub-folder (create it now if missing, or tell your teacher so it can be recreated in under a minute).
- You have a project idea, or you will copy one fallback list: Work Experience kit, small enterprise materials, or Practical Achievement supplies.
Done looks like
- Open a spreadsheet, move with Tab, Enter and arrows, and keep costs as plain numbers
- Create {{code:05_project_budget}} with Item, Category, Cost and Notes and at least five own project rows in class (ten is the stretch target)
If this is your first spreadsheet, clicking the wrong cell once or twice is normal. Today’s win is a tidy grid, not speed.
Use this as a quick map while your teacher points things out on a blank grid. You do not need to memorise every cell name.
Grid map: a cell is one box (for example A1); a row runs left to right; a column runs top to bottom; a sheet tab is one page inside the workbook.
| Concept | Why it matters | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Cell — one box for a single piece of data, named by column letter and row number | Formulas point at cells; wrong cell means wrong totals later | B2 might hold "Materials" for a keyring pack on a stall budget |
| Row and column — row left to right; column top to bottom | One project item per row; one fact type per column so you can sort and total | Row 4 = one stall fee; column C = every Cost stacked for a total |
| Sheet tab — one page in the workbook (often Sheet1 until renamed) | Keep costs on one sheet and funding on another without mixing data | — |
| Character data (text) — words and labels, not numbers | Names and notes stay readable; they will not add up in a SUM | "Jump rings (100 pack)" in Item; "Local print shop" in Notes |
| Numeric data — plain numbers only | Only clean numbers can be totalled or charted later | Enter 18.5 not "€18.50" or "about 18" |
Reference: sample layout
You will rebuild the start of Niamh’s custom keyring stall budget. Columns are Item, Category, Cost and Notes. Your own rows replace hers in independent practice.
| Item | Category | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blank acrylic discs (50) | Materials | 18.5 | Craft supplier pack |
| Jump rings (100 pack) | Materials | 3.8 | Silver tone |
| Organza gift bags | Packaging | 5.5 | 50 pack |
| Market stall fee | Event | 25 | Saturday craft market |
| Business cards | Promo | 15 | Local print shop |
This looks like a long list, but most clicks are the same Tab–type–Tab rhythm. Follow your app branch. Your teacher will show create and rename once on the projector — join from the header row if you are still signing in.
Enter the header row plus Niamh’s sample costs so you learn the layout. If time is short after the first two sample rows, skip sample rows 3–5 and go straight to clear A2:D6 and the one practice row. Everyone must finish the clear and the model row before independent practice.
Take navigation slowly; fluent Tab and Enter saves more time later than rushing five sample rows.
Common Issues
| Issue | Solution |
|---|---|
| My file is not in {{code:05_budget}} | You probably created it from the Drive or OneDrive home page. Move {{code:05_project_budget}} into {{code:05_budget}} now, or create a new sheet from inside that folder and copy the cells across. |
| Cost numbers sit on the left and look like words | You may have typed a currency symbol, a space, or letters into the cell. Clear the cell and retype only the digits and decimal point (for example 18.5). Apply euro formatting from the ribbon later if you want a currency display. |
| I pressed Enter and jumped before I finished the notes | Click back into the cell you need, or use the arrow keys. Use {{key:Tab}} to move sideways while you fill a row; use {{key:Enter}} when the whole row is done. In Google Sheets, click back to column A after Enter before the next Item. |
| I put two items in one cell | Split them. Each real cost gets its own row so you can total and sort later. Insert a blank row if you need space, then type the second item underneath. |
| I cleared my header row by mistake | Retype Item, Category, Cost and Notes in row 1 only. Do not put headings halfway down the sheet. |
| I deleted rows and my grid shrank | Use Undo straight away. Then select only the cells and press {{key:Delete}} to clear contents. Do not use Delete row from the right-click menu unless you really mean to remove a whole row. |
| The screen looks different from the screenshots | Browser zoom and school themes vary. Match the cell letters and the words Item, Category, Cost, Notes rather than pixel-perfect layout. |
Independent Practice
- Stay in {{code:05_project_budget}} inside your {{code:05_budget}} folder. Ensure only row 1 headers remain, or clear/replace the practice Travel row first so Niamh’s stall list is gone.
- Keep the four headings in row 1: Item, Category, Cost and Notes.
- Add at least five rows that are yours — your project, Work Experience kit, small enterprise materials, or Practical Achievement supplies — not Niamh’s stall list. Ten rows is the stretch target; finish the rest the same week if needed.
- Put only plain numbers in the Cost column (no currency symbols, no word euro, no extra spaces).
- Use Notes for a supplier name, a Work Experience link, or the word planned.
If your project list is short, pick from this starter list and adapt the wording: materials pack, printing, travel to Work Experience, tools, stall or platform fee, packaging, poster or flyer, gloves or safety kit, online listing fee, notebook or stationery. Mark Notes as planned where the figure is still a guess.
- {{code:05_project_budget}} lives in your {{code:05_budget}} portfolio folder and opens without hunting
- Row 1 has clear headings for Item, Category, Cost and Notes
- Must-have before you leave: at least five own-project rows (your project or fallback list — not Niamh’s stall); stretch target is ten rows
- Every Cost value is a plain number you could total later
Five honest rows beat twenty vague ones. If a cost is still a guess, put the number in Cost and write planned in Notes. You can tighten figures later.
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