Before reading, ask students to look at the cover and use the See-Think-Wonder strategy.
During reading ask students to find out how and why Curious George decided to save his pennies.
Now, read the Choices, Choices text. At the end of the story, Curious George had a choice to make. When he decided to share his money with the little girl who found his piggy bank, he made a choice. What were the costs of the choice he made? What were the benefits of the choice he made?
Curious George was happy with his decision to share his money. Think of some ways he can earn more money so he can buy the train he really wanted. Use the saving and spending and buying and saving informational texts we created. What advice could you give to Curious George if he wanted to save more money?
Please, Please, the Bees is a great story to use if you want to introduce concepts, such as: wants and needs; goods and services; jobs; and, trade. Before reading, present the cover to the students. Ask them what they think the story is about. Why are the bees on strike?
During reading, ask students to find out why the bees are on strike. They should also look for the following:
After reading, use the Once Upon a Bee-conomy book to extend the text!
Here are more informational texts on bees to share with students. Students can gather more information about how bees are important to our economy.
Opportunity cost is the next best alternative you give up when you make a choice, as illustrated in the slideshow below.
A great book to use to discuss opportunity cost is Something from Nothing, a story about a boy named Joseph whose grandfather gives him a blanket when he is born. While you read, have students watch for problem points in the story. When he outgrows one thing, what does his grandfather decide to do?
Each time Joseph and his grandfather make a decision to make something smaller, they give up the opportunity to keep the item as is. As Joseph grows older, so does the blanket so they decide to turn it into something smaller: a jacket. As Joseph grows older, they make more decisions: the jacket becomes a vest, the vest becomes a tie, the tie becomes a handkerchief, and the handkerchief becomes a button.
The Federal Reserve has an interesting lesson plan that focuses on opportunity cost in the story. In the lesson, the students use a piece of paper to represent the blanket. Each time you come to the part where the grandfather's scissors go Snip, Snip, Snip, the students cut out a piece of the paper. Ask them to discuss the opportunity cost-the thing they gave up-when they decided to make something new.
Extensions:
What Pet Should I Get is an excellent book to teach students about decision-making. The book is about a brother and sister who have to make a decision about buying a pet. While you read, have your students watch for alternatives (types of pets) and criteria (things about the pets, like cost, care, size, etc.).
Below, you will find a decision-making slideshow activity to use with the book. In the activity, you can use the letter from Kay (in the slideshow below) where she outlines all of the criteria found in the book. Using the What Pet Decision Matrix below, students follow instructions to make a decision.
Use the decision-making matrix to decide what pet Kay and her brother should get.
Peter Rabbit is a delightful tale about a little rabbit who often hops down the wrong path. Use Peter Rabbit to discuss the unintended consequences of choices. Start the discussion by asking students about the many decisions they have to make in a day. What should you eat for breakfast? What should you wear? Should you brush your teeth? Should you jump in the mud puddle? They discuss both good and bad consequences of some of their decisions. You can use the Project Gutenberg Tale of Peter Rabbit original or the StorylineOnline.net version below, read by Rose Byrne (who stars in the new movie; the trailer is below).
After you read the story, use the Once about a Decision slideshow to illuminate more economic concepts.
You can also check out the trailer below, the official movie Peter Rabbit Website for the movie and the StorylineOnline.net Teacher Guide for more Peter Rabbit activities.
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AuthorDeborah Kozdras, Ph.D. Archives
February 2022
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