Annotated Bibliography

Althauser, K. & Harter, C. (2016). Math and economics: Implementing authentic instruction in
grades K-5. Journal of Education and Training Studies 4(4). Available:
http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1088512.pdf
The authors use the program Economics: Math in Real Life to teach economics concepts
and personal finance using authentic instruction. Integrating subjects in real life scenarios
allows for connections to be made and a deeper understanding to be achieved. Personal
finance and economics go hand in hand as students can make decisions about their own
money choices.
Blowers, M., Galperin, J. & Stork, S. (2016). Supply and demand 5th grade. Economics4kids
(lesson plan). Available:
http://economics4kids.wikispaces.com/supply+and+demand+5th+grade
The authors describe a quick hands on lesson to introduce supply and demand. Students
bid for items. They discover when items are scarce they are willing to pay more, but when
items are plentiful they are less willing to spend a lot of money.
Borker, D. R. (2013). Mindfulness practices and learning economics. American Journal of
Business Education 6(5). Available: http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1054987.pdf
Mindfulness practices uses meditation and contemplation to increase student learning,
growth, and understanding. Economic concepts requires a vast amount of abstract
thinking. Using mindfulness practices while teaching economics can increase the
knowledge that students retain and allows them to think more meaningfully. Some basic
inclusions of adding mindfulness practices in the classroom include ringing a bell to
symbolize the start and end of leanring and using meditation breathing at the beginning
and ending of class to prepare the mind and body for learning and deeper understanding.
This practice is voluntary and should not be forced upon students.
Cameron, S., Doss, J. & Myers, S. (2008). Economic literacy. USA: Mark Twain Media, Inc.
The authors present economic concepts in a the following format: reading exercise,
assessment, historical connection, knowledge builders and a teacher resource bank. The
reading exercises are all kid-friendly and very informative. The assessments cover the
important material and include a writing piece as well. Depending on the topic some
knowledge builders and historical connections are relevant, others are not. The least
effective section is the teacher resource bank. Many of the websites listed are no longer in
service. This book is the inspiration for the outline for my own lessons: video, reading,
discovery lesson and reflection. I plan to use the readings in this book to cover various
economic topics.
Clifford, J. & Hill, A. (2015, July 8). Intro to economics: Crash course econ #1 (video file).
Available: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ez10ADR_gM
The authors create a funny and educational introduction to economics. This is video one
in a 28 part series. The videos are all very informative and gave me great ideas for
introducing topics in my classroom. The videos themselves are a little above my students
and are a little longer than I would like, but they introduced me to the idea of starting each

unit with an economic video. I can always use a section of a crash course video since the
length is too long.
EconEdLink Staff (n.d.). If I ran the zoo - economics and literature. Econedlink (lesson plan).
Available: http://www.econedlink.org/teacher-lesson/209/If-I-Ran-Zoo-EconomicsLiterture
This lesson plan at Econedlink is a very informative and hands on way to teach the
concepts of choice, scarcity, supply and demand and price to younger students. The
concept is a aimed for students a little younger than sixth grade, but is a still a good
lesson to help students really understand these concepts in a way that is more meaningful
to them.
Friedman, A. (2014). Computer as a data gatherer for a new generation: Matorellas
predictions, the past, the present and the future of technology in social studies.
Contemporary Issues in Technology and Teacher Education, 14(2). Available:
http://www.citejournal.org/vol14/iss2/socialstudies/article1.cfm
Friedman evaluates a 1997 article written by Peter Matorella. Friedman focuses on two of
Matorellas predictions that have come true in regards to technology: computers as the
data gatherers and a more interactive internet. The internet is much more interactive and
can be used for many activities and games. The fact that that the computer is a data
gatherer has a much more controversial classroom connotation however. Because the
internet can be used to find anything there is almost too much information for students to
sift through. If left to their own devices students can spend hours researching the wrong
thing or from an invalid site. Teachers need to make sure they are teaching internet
search skills in the classroom.
Foundation for Teaching Economics (2016). Available: www.fte.org
This website is a great resource on economics. It wants to teach an economic way of
thinking for students. It offers both student and teacher programs, articles on economic
issues and many teacher resources. This site has been useful to gain ideas in getting ideas
for economic topics.
Hofer, M.J. & Swan, K. (2014). Technology and disciplined inquiry in the social studies.
Contemporary Issues in Technology and Teacher Education, 14(3). Available:
http://www.citejournal.org/vol14/iss3/socialstudies/article1.cfm
The authors describe different ways technology is used in social studies. Technology
enhances already used contexts, for example primary sources are more readily viewable
using digital platforms. Digital creation is also available for students to create their own
material. Digital creation is a way for students to show deeper understanding of a
concept. This article spurred my search for an online creation site to use in the classroom.
I chose livebooklet as my digital creation platform.
Hongxin, L. & Mengchun D. (2011). On the application of multimedia in economics teaching.
International Education Studies 4(3). Available:
http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1066536.pdf The authors describe the defects of teaching
traditional economics: teacher is sole source of knowledge, knowledge taught through

description of the abstract and multimedia being used mainly as a presentation tool.
Multimedia can be used to teach economics through displays and graphs. Multimedia
allows for more flexible individualized learning and creates a much more interactive
atmosphere. I plan on using more interactive material to immerse students into economic
content.
Huang, R. & Yang, J. (2015). Development and validation of a scale for evaluating technologyrich classroom environment. Journal of Computers Education, 2(2). Available:
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40692-015-0029-y/fulltext.html
The authors developed a scale to assess the effectiveness of technology in the classroom.
They tested their method and provided results to their study. The best part about this
paper is the actual framework created to assess the technology. I enjoyed the breakdown of
the framework and plan on using it to evaluate my own classroom.
Larson, B.E., & Keiper, T.A. (2002). Classroom discussion and threaded electronic discussion:
Learning in two arenas. Contemporary Issues in Technology and Teacher
Education (online serial), 2(1). Available:
http://www.citejournal.org/vol2/iss1/socialstudies/article1.cfm
The authors describe the pros and cons of both classroom discussions and threaded
discussions via technology. The final conclusion is that rich classroom learning can
happen from both forms of discussion. As with any new educational tool students need to
be taught how to use it correctly. Students who were given more specific directions on the
expectations of the threaded response performed better. This creates new educational
opportunities, because unlike a classroom discussion, internet based discussions can span
an entire semester, not just a class period.
Livebooklet (2016). Available: http://livebooklet.com/index-lb.php
Livebooklet is a free online tool for students to create their own books online. These
books can easily be shared with others. Students receive their own login and can add to
their book throughout the semester. Purchasing an account does allow teachers to link all
the student accounts under theirs and allows them access and control over student
accounts.
Miller, B. & Watts, M. W. (2009). Oh, the economics youll find in Dr. Seuss!. Social Science
Research Network. Available: http://ssm.com/abstract=1364412
The authors analyze and describe economic concepts found in Dr. Seuss books. The
information is very interesting and can be adapted into lessons by a teacher. Some of the
concepts are very abstract and little far reaching in my opinion, but others are more
straightforward and could be used for a younger audience, such as my 6th grade students.
Perez, J.C. (2014). Google wastes no time refining classroom, its app platform for education.
PCWorld. Available: Http://www.pcworld.com/article/2834352/google-wastes-no-timerefining-classroom.htm Perez reviews the Google Classroom app available for teacher and
student use. Google Classroom is compared to Microsoft 365. Perez points out many new
positives with the upgrade including more teacher controls, and while many of the
upgrades really improved the site I was less than impressed with any real classroom

learning improvements. The only real educational advantage I see myself using is the
discussion forum and there are other sites out there that have that feature as well.
Schwartz, S. (2016). U.S. schools get failing grade for financial literacy education. NBCNews.
Available: http://www.nbcnews.com/feature/college-game-plan/u-s-schools-get-failinggrade-financial-literacy-education-n506051
Schwartz discusses the same issues as the Seiter educational article from 30 years before.
Students in the U.S. are not getting a good economics education. This article draws
connections to the states that have upped their economics requirements with better credit
scores because students are better prepared to understand their personal finances. This
deficiency in economics education is the reason I have chosen this topic.
Seiter, D.M. (1989). Teaching and learning economics. ERICDigest. Available:
http://www.ericdigests.org/pre-9210/economics/htm
Seiter describes the problems in teaching economics to students often come back to the
teacher. Many teachers are not properly trained on how to teach economics to students.
This is creating students who are not ready to function in on society on an economic
level. Though this article was written almost thirty years ago it still is relevant. Many of
my students have little to no knowledge on economic issues. This is the main reason I
have chosen this topic, since students seem to be so deficient in this area.
Spector, J.M. (2013). Trends and research issues in educational technology. The Malaysian
Online Journal of Educational Technology 1(3). Available:
http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1086420.pdf
Spector reviews the purpose and application of technology in the classroom. He points
out that technology for technologys sake is never useful. Good technology allows for an
individualized holistic teaching approach, but teachers must be careful in the types of
technology they choose to introduce to the classroom. This article was a nice reminder
that technology should not be forced into a lesson it should evolve naturally and the
integration should only enhance the content being taught.
Thomas, L. (2008). Being present: Mindfulness and yoga at Westminster center school. Horace
24(2). Available: http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1088512.pdf
The author presents classroom management not as a way to maintain order, but as a school
wide type of respect and tone of decency. This is found through mindfulness practices.
Students at Westminster were having trouble controlling their emotions and their
behaviors before the mindfulness techniques were introduced. Students were taught how
to control their breathing and how to incorporate yoga to increase learning. These
techniques can be used to calm or energize a group of students. Benefits of mindfulness
include increased self-esteem and willingness to take risks. This practice seems most
beneficial to my social studies class since it happens directly after lunch. I would like
students to be able to relax and regain focus on education.