Houghton Mifflin:
Explore New Ways to Teach Accounting
Using Peachtree® and QuickBooks®

by Carol Yacht

Both Peachtree and QuickBooks are widely used by accountants, entrepreneurs, and individuals for record keeping. How can you include these two popular software programs in your accounting course? Here are two possible strategies: (1) Use the software to supplement your accounting course; (2) Combine accounting instruction and software.

In the workbook, Exercises and Problems with Peachtree and QuickBooks,¹ both software programs are used to supplement the accounting course. Two CDs are packaged with Exercises and Problems: Peachtree Accounting for Windows Release 5.0 and a Company Data CD. Peachtree is used to supplement material found in chapters 2 through 14 and QuickBooks is used to supplement chapters 7 through 12. Some of the exercises and comprehensive problems are correlated to the Needles et al. accounting texts but this workbook can be used to supplement any accounting course. No previous experience with either Peachtree or QuickBooks is needed to use Exercises and Problems with Peachtree and QuickBooks.

The second strategy is to include the software, Peachtree Accounting for Windows, while teaching accounting theory. College Accounting with Peachtree, Volume 1² combines accounting instruction and general ledger software together. Peachtree is not a supplement—it is required. Two CDs are packaged with College Accounting with Peachtree: Peachtree Accounting for Windows Release 5.0 and a Company Data CD.

College Accounting with Peachtree is different because it teaches beginning accounting using general ledger software. Using Peachtree to reinforce accounting theory is a natural combination. Students complete the steps of the accounting cycle numerous times using both manual and computerized methods. Until now, introductory accounting texts taught students how to do only the manual accounting cycle.

For the second semester of introductory accounting, College Accounting with Excel and Peachtree, Volume 2³ is available. The spreadsheet program, Microsoft Excel, is seamlessly blended into the topics of the second semester course.

Four Peachtree practice sets are also available: Let’s Party, service business; The Rug Bug, wholesale merchandising; Verde Audio and Video, retail merchandising; and Oak Creek Canyon Jewelers, payroll.

The choice is yours. Use accounting software to supplement your course or combine introductory accounting instruction and general ledger software.

¹ Yacht, Carol, Exercises and Problems with Peachtree and QuickBooks, Houghton Mifflin, 1999. (ISBN 0-395-93728-0) [Back to article]

² Peters, Judith; Peters, Robert; Yacht, Carol, College Accounting with Peachtree, Volume 1, Chapters 1–15, Houghton Mifflin, 1999. (ISBN 0-395-94361-2) [Back to article]

³ Peters, Judith; Peters, Robert; Yacht, Carol, College Accounting with Excel and Peachtree, Volume 2, Chapters 16–28, Houghton Mifflin, 1999. (ISBN 0-395-93191-6) [Back to article]