This year, I’ve challenged myself to make Social Studies more
fun. There are so many wonderful things
you can do to breathe life into a subject that many just pull out a textbook
for!
During first quarter, according to North Carolina Essential
Standards, we were to teach a unit on Economy.
Being in Wake
County, we have access to
online curriculum that is already developed for us. While the Social Studies curriculum is
becoming better and better, I still like to put my own spin on it and be
creative to help my students truly enjoy learning.
I created a short Economy Simulation Unit for my students-
to meet all of the standards, along with teaching them real-life skills and we
also had a little fun along the way!
First, we talked about all of the different bills and
payments that their parents pay each month.
Then, I had them choose (from a list I created) education, a job, a
place to live, car, bills, extras, etc.
Basically, having them choose what their life could look like. However, attached to these choices were
dollar amounts. Whichever job they chose
gave them a certain income per month.
They then would have to pay bills from this amount. Almost like a way more realistic MASH
(Mansion, Apartment, Shack, House- who remembers that game?!? ;)
My kiddos had so much fun choosing these “grown up” things
and then we talked about the hard part- making sure you have enough money to
cover all of your bills, and then paying the bills themselves. I gave them a Transaction Register Sheet
(just like in a checkbook) and had them fill it out as they filled out their
checks. They would make a payment to the
company by placing a filled-out check in an envelope with the company’s name on
it.
Of course I modeled (several times) how to properly fill out
a check and a Transaction Register Sheet.
I was worried that it might be too difficult for my 5
th
graders to do all of this, but the really rose to the occasion!
But of course, what would life be without a curve ball or
two? To make this simulation a little
more interesting, I also allowed each student to choose 2-3 Entertainment Cards
after all of their bills were paid. I
had anything from free entertainment (hanging out with friends) to expensive
entertainment (going to a concert).
I also then made them choose 2 Fate Cards. These Fate Cards were to help simulate real
life situations- anything from a friend being able to fix your car for free,
having to buy a new tire for your car, or your car breaking down and having to
spend over $300 to get it fixed.
I think the most interesting thing to me was how the
students chose the entertainment cards and how they made their original choices
for cars, homes, etc. Some students
chose the most expensive of everything, but quickly saw that wasn’t going to
work on their smaller income. Some
students were more conservative with their choices and chose the cheapest of
each choice. And surprisingly, many
students chose the free Entertainment Cards- when there were many really good
choices for fun entertainment!
I also included a reflection portion on the back of the
foldable- I wanted my students to think about the simulation as a whole, their
choices and how that relates to real-life.
I used the Icons of Depth and Complexity to guide my questions and I
love how they turned out! (If you are
not familiar with the Icons of Depth and Complexity, please visit JTaylor
Education to find out more- they are life changing!)
This was such a fun Simulation Unit for me and for my
students. One of my girls told me that
she didn’t really like Social Studies until this year- a really cool
compliment, and who knows, maybe it will inspire her to realize a passion for
something!
J Ashley
