I remember buying a stock market game when I was a kid and playing it with my sister (I think she still has it). While it was fun it was really just a version of Monopoly and didn’t actually teach me anything about trading.
If you really want to learn stock market trading there are two schools of thought as to how you initially approach the markets…
First, there is paper trading where you simulate your trades and record them either using paper, a spreadsheet or computer program.
The second method is to use real money and just start trading once you have developed your trade plan and have all of your trading tools in place.
Now, many people will strongly advise that you paper trade for some time before risking real money while others say that this makes little sense as you never know how you will react until you are tested by fire and have real money at risk.
I fall into the latter group and don’t paper trade because it is too easy to do. By that I mean that your emotions are not a factor when you are using “play” money and until you have real cash on the line you won’t know how you will really do as a trader.
In recent years there is a new method of learning to trade that goes by many names and is a nice bridge between paper trading and actual trading that you might want to consider…
Fantasy stock market game, virtual stock market game and online stock market games are just a few of the terms used to describe these new stock market simulation games that are web based and often free to join.
I have been looking at one of these free stock market games called Wall Street Survivor that not only allows you to sharpen your trading skills without risking your capital but also lets you win prizes while doing so by competing against other traders.
For those of you that don’t want to risk your money while learning to trade I would take a look at Wall Street Survivor. Hey, it’s free and you just might win something. 
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