New York Mets outfielder Curtis Granderson wowed students and adults alike with his talk about the importance of education, helping others and being responsible with one’s finances at a three-day financial literacy summer camp for public school students hosted for the second year in a row by the UFT. Third- through 6th-graders from PS 1 in Chinatown and PS 156 in Brownsville, Brooklyn, two of the UFT’s Community Learning Schools, engaged in exercises and discussions in late July about how to take care of their money, led by some of their teachers and representatives from PricewaterhouseCoopers, which sponsored the camp. Granderson, whose parents were public school teachers, told the children about his own experience with his first bank account. “I put $50 into it when I opened it, and then I used my own money to go to the movies,” he recalled. “When I checked my bank account, I wanted to know what happened to my $50. I was told there is no longer $50 because I spent some of it.” Granderson said it taught him how to prioritize his spending and, if he wanted something, he first had to figure out what he’d have to do to pay for it. Of the 750 players in the major leagues, Granderson is one of only 40 to have a college degree, which he called “the biggest accomplishment of my life.” Students spent the rest of the camp engaging in activities and games aimed at helping them learn about budgeting and saving money, with guidance from the teachers and volunteers.