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ED

305 Calvin College Lesson Planning Form


Names Anika Slauer and Evan Kroon
Big Idea: Building a Better Business
Thread/Crossover: Economics and ELA
Grade: 4th

I. Objectives
What is the main focus of this lesson? Students will interact with the concept of supply and demand as it works in todays society
while discussing its role within the Detroit auto industry.
How does this lesson tie in to your units Big Idea? Our big idea is focusing on the basics of business. In this lesson the students will
experience the effects of supply and demand as it relates to trading, as well as how supply and demand affected Michigans
economy.
What are your objectives for this lesson? (As many as needed.) Indicate connections to applicable national or state standards.
Include any themes or major concepts from the thread (themes of geography, Core Principles of Economics, etc)

1. Students will be able to define supply and demand, scarcity, opportunity costs, and trade-offs.
ELA: Reading Erandis Braids to learn about opportunity costs and trade-offs.
2. Students will experience the process of supply and demand.
4 E1.0.6 Explain how competition among buyers results in higher prices and competition among sellers results in
lower prices (e.g., supply, demand).
3. Students will determine how supply and demand affects pricing.
4 E1.0.4 Explain how price affects decisions about purchasing goods and services (substitute goods).
4. Students will make connections between supply and demand and their own business proposals.


II. Before you start
Prerequisite knowledge and skills.

In the two lessons prior, the students will have started developing mini business proposals
with a group of 5 students.

Assessment
(formative and summative)


Formative: We will walk around as the students are working through the simulation to see
how they interact with one another. At the end of the simulation we will have a discussion
about what the students noticed in regards to supply and demand based on their supply
results.

Summative: The students will work in their assigned business groups to determine and write
down prices for their product given the resource prices. They will discuss how to make the
product more affordable, and whether or not their product is in high demand based on their
target population.

Pencils
Journals
Michigan Bartering Session Worksheet
300-400 beaver pellets (felt strips)
Materials-what materials (books,
10 premade supply bags (25 items each-axes, knives, and bear grease are in high demand)
handouts, etc) do you need for this
Remaining supply cards at trading post
lesson and do you have them?
Our Michigan Adventure by David B. McConnell
Erandis Braids by Antonio Hernandez Madrigal and Tomie dePaola
(http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/book/erandis-braids-0#cart/cleanup)

Do you need to set up your


classroom in any special way for
this lesson? If so, describe it.

Table in front of the room will be made into a trading post with extra supply cards. Beaver
pellets will be scattered around the room. Students will have bartering worksheets, journals,
and pencils out.



III. The Plan
Time

10
min

15
min

Parts
Motivation
(Opening/
Introduction/
Engagement)

Development

The description of (script for) the lesson, wherein you describe teacher activities and student activities
(indicate in parenthesis where you are addressing standards and themes)
Today we will be talking about a few more elements of a business. One of these elements is opportunity
cost. Were going to read Erandis Braids in order to learn about opportunity costs and trade-offs.

Read Erandis Braids.

What did Erandi have to trade in order to make money? (Her hair) So her opportunity cost was her hair
because she had to give up her hair. Can you tell me what the trade-off was? (Money for a fishing net)

Were going to read a little bit more about opportunity costs and tradeoffs in our textbooks Our Michigan
Adventure. Turn to page 50.




5 min







5 min















5 min
5 min
5 min
5 min
5 min


Have students move to carpet and pick a new reader every paragraph. Read through page 55.

Ask the Questions to think about, Brain Stretchers, and Words in Action! questions in order to get the
students discussing supply and demand.

So were going to put these concepts into action. We learned that opportunity costs and tradeoffs create
a sense of supply and demand. As people are presented with different opportunities they have to pay a
cost, and sometimes that cost increases if the supply of the opportunity (or the demand) is low.

We are about to become fur traders in order to experience the idea of supply and demand! You will be
paired with your shoulder partner and the two of you will receive a bag of resources. You should sort
your resources so that you can easily know how many of each resource you have. (Handout resource bags
and bartering sheets while explaining) Your team is trying to survive for the winter, and in order to
survive you need the different items listed on the sheet. You can see on your bartering sheets how many
of each item you need in order to survive. Around the room are a number of beaver pellets (show one to
the students) that you will be collectingwhile one partner collects, the other partner must stay at their
desk and barter, which we will talk more about in a minute. These pellets can be traded for different
items. On your sheets there are suggested items costs; however, it is up to you to determine the price of
your items. You may trade with your classmates in order to reach the number of items you need.

There will be multiple rounds, and each round will be slightly different.
As I said earlier, only one partner may collect furs, while the other partner manages your items and
barters. Dont worry, everyone will have a chance to collect and barter.

Without further ado, we will begin!

Round 1: one partner barters, one trades at post
Round 2: partners switch roles
Round 3: partners switch back to round 1 roles
Round 4: partners switch back to round 2 roles
Round 5: Mademoiselle Slauers Fort opens for trading (all hunting/collecting, trading, and bartering
continues; however, students may come to the Fort where the teacher will have extra supplies and will
very the prices based on the supply and demand).

Once at least a few students have collected all needed supplies, end the simulation.

10
min

Lets talk a little bit about what we noticed in our trading. First of all, raise your hand if you survived? It
looks like not many of us did. Which items did people still need? Were there a lot of those items floating
around? This would be an example of what? (Scarcity) How much did they cost in comparison to the
other items? So what can you tell me about the supply and the demand of these items? How did the
supply and demand affect the cost? So what were different opportunity costs that you experienced? Did
the tradeoff pay off or no? Does anyone have anything else they want to share?

Have the work with their assigned business groups (that theyve been working with all week) to
determine and write down prices for their product given the resource prices. They will discuss how to
make the product more affordable, and whether or not their product is in high demand based on their
target population. (Make sure students are writing down their thoughts in their journals)


Tomorrow we will continue to learn about businesses and how they function by using credit!

Closure

Explain how this lesson supports your Big Idea. What is the takeaway?

The students are modeling basic business principles as they participate in a simulation on supply and demand understanding that as
supply decreases and demand increases, prices will also increase, and vice versa.

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