Stock-Market-Strategy-Games-Learn-Stock-Trading-New-Investor-By-Sagar-Ganatra

1. Wall Street Survivor

Invest $100,000 in virtual cash via drop-down menu choices. A friendly cartoon version of stock guru Mark Brookshire helps you make your final decision by providing some rating numbers when you input a stock. These include a rating for survivor sentiment, fundamentals, technical and a Motley Fool Rating.
For additional help choosing stocks, the site has an impressive resource library that spans beginner, intermediate and advanced levels. Start with Investing 101 and consider taking advantage of the community forums if you have specific questions. Those who need a little help getting started can also choose to adapt one of the preset portfolios created by proven traders.
While the $100,000 competition is most popular, anybody on the site can create a contest. Prizes vary, but most often consist of competitive pride.

2. HowTheMarketWorks

Owned by the same company as Wall Street Survivor, this game is great for investors looking to gain experience with a new type of portfolio. In addition to stocks and indexes, there are options to experiment with Forex portfolios, penny stocks, mutual funds and short selling.
Beginners can execute market order-based trades in a "fun mode" without worrying about things like set hours, maximum number of trades per day, per stock and order expiration. A "realistic mode" amps up the complexity after they've mastered the beginner level.
Players can manage up to three stock portfolios and three Forex portfolios on the site at once. For each portfolio, they select a starting value between $100 and $500,000 and set how much virtual commission you are charged per trade.
The competition aspect is optional. General monthly contests give each player $25,000 as a virtual starting point. Other public contests include challenging restrictions like "short sells only" or "penny stocks only." Users can create their own password-protected games as well, which is a feature that teachers find helpful for creating class competitions.

3. Young Money Stock Market Game

Young Money Magazine's stock exchange game is easy to learn but also fairly realistic, which is a hard balance to strike.
Realistic aspects include a virtual commission that's taken out of each trade, adhering to market hours and rules about how you can invest. Unlike many investing games, trades are made at a real-time price. Learning aspects include convenient help icons on key terms and an intuitive tabbed interface.
The site runs a monthly contest with a $100 (real) cash prize that goes to whoever gained the highest percentage. Players can also create their own contests or join other user-made contests.

4. MarketWatch Fantasy Earnings Trader Game

MarketWatch will run this mock stock market contest for a total of four weeks, awarding the winner of each week with an iPad. It's on week three right now, but there's still time to get in on the competition for week four.
You must have your selections picked before the week starts on Monday. The shares that you select are "purchased" at Monday's open and will "sell" automatically at Friday's close.
The catch is that all players can only use the 15 to 20 symbols selected for each week. The companies are selected by the game owner for companies that are projecting their earnings during each week. Lining up picks is easy -- players simply drag the company's logo to their trading card and designate if they want to sell short or go long.
Although there are some pros playing, this game is especially manageable for beginners due to the limited stock options for each week.

5. UpDown

Like Young Money's game, UpDown has helpful icons that explain key terms for beginners. More comprehensive resources in the education center mercifully cover even the most basic of investing concepts.



1. Open a Stock Broker Account
Find a good online stock broker and open an account. Become familiarized with the layout and to take advantage of the free trading tools offered to clients only. Some brokers even offer virtual trading which is extremely beneficial because you can trade with play money. You can find a list of brokers that support virtual trading on StockBrokers.com.
2. Read Books
Books provide a wealth of information and are usually inexpensive. Here on the site I have a full list of 20 great stock trading books for investors to consider. My personal all time favorite is How to Make Money in Stocks by William O’Neil, founder of CANSLIM Trading (find more books written by William O'Neil).
3. Read Articles
Articles can serve as a fantastic resource and are usually easy to understand and follow. Our free Stock Education page here on Stock Trading To Go lists over 100 unique investment articles broken down into categories. Everything from ETFs to margin trading and technical analysis basics are covered. I also recommend checking out investopedia.com.
4. Find a Mentor
A mentor could be a family member, a friend, a past or current professor, co-worker, or any individual that has a fundamental understanding of the stock market. A good mentor is willing to answer questions, provide help, recommend useful resources, and keep spirits up when the market gets tough. All successful investors of the past and present have had mentors during their early days.
5. Ask Lots of Questions
Having a place to ask questions and receive answers is a huge asset for any new investor. In school asking questions to a teacher/instructor/professor or leveraging online stock forums there is always someone readily available to help the cause. Some popular stock forums include Elite Trader and Trade2Win.
6. Browse Financial News Sites
News sites such as Yahoo Finance and Google Finance serve as a great resource for new investors. By reading headline stories investors can expose themselves to different stock terms for example. Pulling quotes and observing fundamental data can also serve as another good source of exposure.
7. Consider Paid Subscriptions
Paying for research and analysis can be both educational and useful. Some investors may find watching or observing market professionals to be more beneficial than trying to apply newly learned lessons themselves. There are many paid subscription sites available including Dan Zanger, Investors.com, and Morningstar just to name a few.
8. Watch TV
When the stock market is open CNBC is the #1 source for financial news. Even turning on CNBC for 15 minutes a day will broaden an investors knowledge base. Don't let the lingo or the style of news be a nuisance, just simply watch and allow the commentators, interviews, and comments to soak in. Note though, over time you may find that a lot of the investing shows on TV are more of a distraction and overall full of crap. This is a natural occurrence; you are not alone!
9. Go to Seminars
Seminars can provide valuable insight into the overall market and specific investment types. Most seminars will focus on one specific aspect of the market and how the speaker has found success utilizing their own strategies over the years. Note all seminars have be paid for either. Some seminars are provided free which can be a beneficial experience, just be conscious of the sales pitch that will almost always come at the end.
10. Sign up for our Free Daily Market Recaps
Written by professional investors and seasoned traders, our Daily Market Recaps are read by over 15,000 subscribers currently, serving as a great source of daily education and analysis on the market. Subscribe with Email ; Subscribe using RSS.