Learn how to balance your books and develop the skills to manage finances in personal and business environments. Discover how money flows in personal and business environments and develop the basic skills to manage your finances with this course introducing you to bookkeeping and accounting.
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You’ll master common terms, basic maths and gain the ability to put your knowledge into practice. After this course you’ll be able to perfectly balance your books and understand how concepts of profit and loss lead to revenue or debt.
Develop ideas through conversation
This course is not facilitated. Learners are encouraged to support one another, share personal experience and knowledge, and see new perspectives.
What topics will you cover?
Week 1 - financial accounting and reporting
The reasons and objectives of management and financial accounting, including stewardship, control and accountability
Key terminology including income and expenses, assets and liabilities, profit and loss statements and the balance sheet
Week 2 - essential numerical skills
Intermediate numerical skills including BODMAS, ratios, percentages, fractions and negative numbers
The test of reasonableness and the table of equivalencies
Manipulating equations and formulas
Week 3 - double-entry and the balance sheet
Business entity and the dual aspect concepts
The relationship between the accounting equation and double-entry bookkeeping
Recording transactions in the appropriate ledger accounts using the double-entry bookkeeping system
Simple balance sheets in a vertical format
Balancing off accounts at the end of an accounting period
Preparing a trial balance
T accounts, debits and credits
Double-entry and the profit and loss account
The effect of profit on the accounting equation
Week 4 - accounting
Income and expense accounts
Accounting for closing stock
The account equation and double-entry rules
Trial balance nominal ledger accounts
What will you achieve?
- Describe and define bookkeeping and accounting
- Explain the general purposes and functions of accounting
- Explain the differences between management and financial accounting
- Describe the main elements of financial accounting information – assets, liabilities, revenue and expenses
- Identify the main financial statements and their purposes.
- Apply the essential numerical skills required for bookkeeping and accounting
- Explain the relationship between the accounting equation and double-entry bookkeeping
- Record transactions in the appropriate ledger accounts using the double-entry bookkeeping system
- Balance off ledger accounts at the end of an accounting period
- Produce a trial balance, balance sheet and a profit and loss account.
