ACCOUNTING 211 TUTORIAL USING EXCEL

FINANCIAL TOPICS

~ Welcome! This website contains a set of Excel spreadsheets for your use in learning accounting. You can download these on to your computer or print them and work with the hard copy. Your computer should do Windows 95 or higher, Excel , and Word. If you are not familiar with Excel, you can work with the hard copy.

~ The TUTORIAL uses Excel. Each spreadsheet is designed for you to enter data or answer queries. In some cases, you will enter data and "see" how it fits into a journal entry, a statement, or a related accounting topic. In others, you will be asked to identify financial items, like accounts, used to summarize data. For each of these there are two spreadsheets, an Initial and a Completed one. The Initial needs missing information you will provide. The missing information is contained in a narrative text called INSTRUCTIONS, written in Word. Besides providing the missing data, it will explain the topic, e.g. it will explain journal entries, statements, etc. When the missing information is entered by you, the spreadsheet will complete the task, i.e. it has been programmed to perform certain routines such as journal entries, financial statements, calculations, etc. It has also been programmed to give you feedback on your answers, e.g. in some cases it may say "In balance"  or "Correct" to give you immediate feedback on your response. To see the complete correct answer, download or look at the Completed spreadsheet for that learning unit.

~ THERE IS A LEARNING ADVANTAGE TO USING THESE SPREADSHEETS. You are getting INSTANT FEEDBACK telling you whether or not your entry is correct. Also, if you do not understand a calculation, go to the formula bar at the top of the page. The formula bar tells you how the cell was programmed, so that you can see what the cell is doing or what information it seeks. At the same time you are CONSOLIDATING concepts and principles. This means allowing a certain amount of learning time so that the concepts and principles become part of your long term memory. Therefore, after seeing the correct responses in the Completed spreadsheet, you can look at the formula bar to see why, and you can change the data and look at the result. In other words, if you download the spreadsheet you can work with it to see what happens in a variety of situations. Repetition and manipulation of data help you to understand the logic behind entries, statements, calculations, etc.

~ Let's get started. I've listed the title of each TUTORIAL  and the INSTRUCTIONS to accompany it. The TUTORIALS are in .xls and the INSTRUCTIONS  are in .doc. Basically, follow the numbers and remember .xls (spreadsheet) and .doc (instructions). Download and print the INSTRUCTIONS; work with the SPREADSHEET in electronic format. After you work with the spreadsheet, print copies for yourself.

~ First go to the INSTRUCTIONS and print a copy. Then go to the accompanying spreadsheet titled INITIAL, load it onto your computer; follow the instructions to complete, run off a copy, then load the spreadsheet titled COMPLETED. Check your responses with it. Review the formula bar for those cells you don't. understand. Go back and make your own changes; watch what happens. THE SPREADSHEET ALLOWS YOU TO MAKE CHANGES AND SEE THE RESULT INSTANTLY---INSTANT FEEDBACK. ALSO, WITH REPEATED CHANGES, YOU ALLOW TIME FOR LEARNING, CALLED CONSOLIDATION.

~ NOTE: be sure you read the instructions on entering data. In some cases, you will have to leave spaces between entries, e.g. when entering credit entries, you need to space three times, i.e. hit the space bar three times before entering information.

~ These tutorials have been designed to follow the financial accounting sequence. You can work with each of them or select the ones you want. In other words, you can work with all of them or any one of them. By doing this, you work at your own pace.

~ Good luck!
 

 

TUTORIALS and INSTRUCTIONS	TOPICS
Tutorial #1 Initial and Tutorial #1Complete; Inst #1	Working with A = L + E
Acc Tutorial #2 Initial and Tutorial #2 Complete; Inst #2	Identifying accounts
Acc Tutorial #3 Initial and Tutorial #3 Complete; Inst #3	The rules of debit and credit
Unit #4 and Unit #4 Complete; Inst #4	Debits, credits, and equity
Tutorial #5 Initial and Tutorial #5 Complete; Inst #5	Normal account balances
Tutorial #6 Initial and Tutorial #6 Complete; Inst #6	Journal entries
Tutorial #7 II and Tutorial #7 Complete; Inst #7	Account balances
Tutorial #8 Initial and Tutorial #8 Complete; Inst #8	Adjusting entries
Tutorial #9 Initial and Tutorial #9 Complete; Inst #9	Adjusted trial balance
Tutorial #10 Initial and Tutorial #10 a and b Complete; Inst #10	Closing entries
Tutorial #11 Initial and Tutorial #11 Complete; Inst #11	Inventories
Tutorial #12 Overview and Overview with changes; Instr	An overview of all statements
Tutorial #13 Initial and Tutorial #13 Complete; Inst #13	Multiple step income statements
Tutorial #14 Initial and Tutorial #14 Complete; Inst #14	Retained earnings statement
Tutorial #15 Initial and Tutorial #15 Complete; Inst #15	Classified balance sheet
Tutorial #16 Initial and Tutorial #16 Complete; Inst #16	Cash flow
Tutorial #17 Initial and Tutorial #17 Complete; Inst #17	Horizonal Analysis Income Statement
Tutorial #18 Initial and Tutorial #18 Complete; Inst #18	Horizonal Analysis Balance Sheet
Tutorial #19 Initial and Tutorial #19 Complete; Inst #19	Vertical Analysis Income Statement
Tutorial #20 Initial and Tutorial #20 Complete; Inst #20	Vertical Analysis Balance Sheet