Show Me the Money: Economics in American
History
Aim
The module, Show Me the Money: Economics in American
History will guide fourth- and fifth-grade Chicago Public School students
through American History through a focus on topics related to Economics.
Rationale
Economics, the analysis of the production,
distribution, and consumption of goods is central to understanding how
we make choices as individual consumers. Economics is significant in understanding
the origins of the United States, and how this country became a world
power. Finally, Economics is important to understanding our relationship
to other nations, both as consumers of imported products and as a country
that makes decisions about trade agreements.
Audience
This module is designed for fourth- and fifth-grade
students in the Chicago Public Schools. It could also be used by private
school students or any other young people (or adults) interested in the
early history of Chicago.
Return to top
Pre-Requisites
Reading at a 4th grade level
Use of Internet browsers
Use of a mouse
Subject Matter
The subject matter of this module will include:
- Producers and consumers.
- Important people, inventions, and events in American
history related to Economics.
- Labor history, including slave labor, child labor,
labor unions, and reforms.
- The role economics has played in the development
of the United States as a world power.
- The effect of war on the economy.
Materials
Internet-linked computer with browser (version 4.0
recommended) for each student or group of students.
Journal (optional)
Return to top
Instructional Plan
Teachers typically seat two students together at
a computer. Students take turns reading the tour to each other and work
together to answer online journal questions. Often teachers pair a strong
reader with a student who needs help reading to foster peer guidance.
Teachers may wish to use a projector to help students get started. The
teacher (or technical coordinator) can show students how to navigate,
enlarge pictures, and use the encyclopedia. After reading a few pages
together, teachers then allow students (paired or single) to read independently.
Goals and Objectives
The foci of this module are State Goals 1, 2, 3,
5 (Language Arts) and 15, 16, 17 (Social Science). Some tours in this
module include standards in Math and Science. Refer to each tour's teaching
guide for a standards chart that includes specific Chicago Academic Statements
and Curriculum Framework statements.
For detailed information on the standards, visit the
Chicago
Public Schools website.
Assessment
and Evaluation
Each tour has an online journalling function which
is the primary form of assessment in the tours. The journal is printable.
Tours may include learning-based interactive activities and other forms
of self-testing for the student.
Refer to teaching guides for individual tours for quiz and essay questions.
Refer to the Additional Activities section in individual tours for project
ideas that could be used for assessment.
Additional Information
Resources
for children's literature
An
Economics glossary
At-a-glance
History of Money
Evidence
of student learning in Economics, based on A Framework for Teaching
Basic Concepts, National Council on Economic Education, 1995.
Economics Resources by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston (Requires Adobe
Acrobat - click here
to download.)
History
of Colonial Money
Historical Beginnings
The Panic
of 1907
Closed for the
Holiday: The Bank Holiday of 1933
Colonial
Economic Growth - in-depth outline of the economic history of this
period.
Course materials
on American Economic History from the State University of West Georgia
- see list of lectures for specific topics.
The Federal Reserve Bank -
good resource to get acquainted with banking history.
The
Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago - Economic education resources, including
lesson plans.
Inflation calculator
U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational
Outlook Handbook. Excellent resource for researching jobs.
|
