Focus: Invoices, receipts, purchase orders, statements, timesheets, deposit slips.
Key Responsibility: Organize, classify, and retain all source documents supporting transactions.
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Week 3 introduces the documentation backbone of bookkeeping: source documents. Students learn how every transaction must be supported by evidence, and how documents are organized, classified, and retained to support accurate financial reporting, audits, and compliance.
By the end of this week, students will be able to:
Source documents are the original records that provide evidence and details of a financial transaction. They verify that a transaction occurred, show the amount, date, and parties involved, and serve as the basis for journal entries.
Key purposes:
Issued to customers when billing for goods or services. Includes date, customer name, items, quantities, prices, terms, and due dates. Supports Accounts Receivable and revenue recognition.
Received from vendors for goods or services purchased. Supports Accounts Payable and expense or asset recognition.
Internal authorization to buy goods or services. Includes quantities, agreed prices, and approvals. Used to match with vendor invoices.
Proof of payment for purchases. May be paper or digital. Supports expense entries and reimbursement processes.
Summaries of account activity used for reconciliations and verification of cash and credit balances.
Records of hours worked by employees. Used to calculate payroll and allocate labor costs.
Deposit slips document cash and check deposits; sales receipts and POS records document point-of-sale sales.
Long-term arrangements such as leases and service contracts that support future obligations and revenue.
Understanding whether a document is internal or external helps classify its origin and determine how it should be validated and filed.
Students map how documents move from the initial transaction to the records in the general ledger and financial statements.
Bookkeepers must maintain both paper and digital filing systems that are logical, consistent, and easy to audit.
YYYY-MM-DD_Vendor_Amount_Description.pdfBest practices include avoiding duplicates, using backups, and maintaining access controls.
Students review general retention guidelines (actual requirements vary by jurisdiction and industry):
The bookkeeper’s responsibility is to ensure documents are retained and accessible for the required time period.
Students receive a mixed set of sample documents and must identify the document type, internal/external status, related account, and filing location.
Groups create flowcharts for various business scenarios (inventory purchase, payroll, utility payment) showing each document produced.
Students design a digital folder structure and rename sample files based on given naming conventions.
Students identify 25 sample documents, label them internal or external, and state which transaction type they support.
Students propose paper & digital filing systems for a fictional company, including folder structure, naming conventions, and retention notes.
For 10 business scenarios, students list all documents generated, their sequence, responsible department, and related ledger entries.
Why is it important for bookkeepers to maintain a complete and accurate set of source documents? What risks does a business face if documentation is missing or poorly organized?
Week 3 emphasizes that bookkeeping is not just about numbers—it is about evidence. Source documents provide the proof behind every entry. A skilled bookkeeper organizes, classifies, and retains these documents so that every transaction is traceable, verifiable, and audit-ready.
In Week 4, students begin using these documents to prepare journal entries and post to the general ledger.