1.1 Semester Pre-Assessment

A no-stakes test of economic literacy is given to establish a baseline of economic knowledge and repeated at the end of the semester to determine growth.

1.2 Packing for a River Trip: An Introduction to Economics 

Planning a two-week river trip, students learn how economic principles, especially scarcity, influence decision making.

"The students were engaged in the lesson for the whole class period." - James K., Florida

1.3 Thinking Like an Economist: Part 1 

Students learn about the roles of economists and how to apply the first two principles of economic thinking (cost-benefit and opportunity cost) to decision making. Watch a video tutorial.

"I absolutely loved the activator for this lesson & the emphasis on economics being a social science ... Overall, the lesson was very easy to implement." - Aaron M., Indiana

1.4 Thinking Like an Economist: Part 2 

Students apply two more economic thinking principles (marginal and interdependence) to decision making. Watch a video tutorial.

1.5 Exploring Diminishing Marginal Utility 

Participating in an economic experiment with chewing gum, students learn about the scientific method and diminishing marginal utility.

1.6 Complexities of Decision Making 

Cognitive biases like present bias, sunk cost fallacy, and framing effect are analyzed through real-world examples and personal experiences to understand their impact on decision making. Watch a video tutorial.

"I liked the lesson. Very engaging and not boring. I liked how interactive [the] handout [was] with a fun doodle." - Student, AZ

1.7 Review to Date 

Key concepts from Unit 1 are reviewed through station rotations to prepare for the summative assessment and identify areas needing further study.

"Lesson plan is great, gets kids interacting and moving." -Lianne K., New Jersey

1.8 Introduction to the Production Possibilities Frontier (PPF) 

Students produce tiger and panda bookmarks and use data from the simulation to create a production possibilities frontier. Watch a video tutorial.

"I loved this lesson and so did my students. I am trying to incorporate more student driven learning in my classroom and this worked great!" -Anne R., North Carolina

1.9 Adding Complexity to the PPF: Part 1 

Factors of production, opportunity costs, and shifts in the PPF are explored to develop a deeper understanding of the production possibilities frontier. Watch a video tutorial.

"My students loved how interactive they were able to be with their peers." - Sara H., Alabama

1.10 Adding Complexity to the PPF: Part 2 

Building on previous lessons, students link the PPF to key economic concepts and practice interpreting and generating PPF models.

"Great discussion among students, lesson uncovered some concepts that are still not clear to students." - Cheryl G., GA

1.11 Assessment Preview

To prepare for the Unit 1 summative assessment students preview the requirements and rubric.  Then they'll apply the rubric to two sample assessments. A bonus "Taboo" review is included. 

"I was pleasantly surprised by how well my students took to the activity. They'd never played Taboo before, but a quick explanation and off they went." -Educator in SC

1.12 Principles of Economic Thinking in the News

In this lesson students complete a summative assessment where they relate one of the principles of economic thinking to a news story.