Make History Come Alive:
Economics and Common Core
Midwest Economic Education Conference
May 23-24, 2013
Grant Black
UMSL Center for Entrepreneurship and
Economic Education
Common Core Highlights
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Reading and writing across the curriculum
Increased emphasis on informational reading
Comprehension and collaboration
Presentation of knowledge and ideas
Content-specific vocabulary
Problem solving and reasoning
Focused mathematical processes and
proficiency
Economics and Common Core
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Interdisciplinary connections
Analytical thinking and reasoning
Problem solving
Informational texts
Content vocabulary
Math applications
Data analysis
Research
Examples
• Two elementary curricula using economics to
address social studies and Common Core
standards
– The Louisiana Expansion
– Kaleidoscope, USA
– pcs.umsl.edu/econed
The Louisiana Expansion
• Thematic, interdisciplinary
unit that brings this
historical event to life for
students
• 8 interactive lessons: stand
alone or as a unit
• Teaching strategies and
activities include: games,
plays, creating a timeline,
journaling, worksheets,
discussions, group
presentations, critical
thinking, mathematical
calculations and reasoning
COMMON CORE STANDARDS CORRELATION FOR LOUISIANA EXPANSION
Standards/Lessons
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Speaking & Listening
SL.4.1a, SL.5.1a
Common Core
Connections:
Reading for Informational Text
RI.4.3, RI. 5.3
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Writing
W.4.3, W.5.3
W4.4, W.5.4
•Speaking and
listening
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W.4.7, W.5.7
W.4.8, W.5.8
W.4.10, W.5.10
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Mathematical Practices
•Reading for
Informational
Text
MP.1
MP.2
MP.3
MP.4
MP.5
MP.6
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Operations and Algebraic Thinking
•Writing
4.OA.3
5.OA.2
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Numbers and Operations in Base Ten
•Math
4.NBT.1, 5.NBT.1
4.NBT.4
4.NBT.5, 5.NBT.5
4.NBT.6, 5.NBT.6
5.NBT.7
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Measurement and Data
4.MD.2
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Sample
Lesson 8: Worth the Trouble?
• Students learn about Gross Domestic Product
(GDP)
• Look at current day GDP for the US and GDP in
the 13 states that were part of the Louisiana
Territory
• Student learn about resources and the circular
flow of the economy
• Students work in groups to research
information about the 13 states
GDP Activity
• Divide into groups of ~5
• Each group represents a country with its own
economy
• Each group should name its country
• Each group gets an “economy bag”
• Each group calculates its own GDP
– Calculate market value for each good
• Market Value = Quantity x Price
– Calculate GDP by adding up market values for all goods
• Each group calculates per capita GDP
– Per capita GDP = GDP / population
Price List
• Buttons
15 ₵
• Cotton swabs 10₵
• Pipe cleaners 5₵
• Colored sticks 25₵
• Foam cutouts 30₵
• Toothpicks
2₵
Calculating GDP
(Activity 8.1)
Good
Quantity Produced
Price
Total
Example: Button
2
15₵
30₵
Our Country’s GDP ___________
GDP Report
(Visual 8.1)
Country
Gross Domestic Product
Per Capita GDP
Kaleidoscope, USA
• Thematic, interdisciplinary unit in which
students live history as community
developers from colonial period onwards
• 12 interactive lessons in 5 units
• Students use economics, geography,
language arts, science and math skills to
develop their own fictitious community
from a proprietor colony into an
industrialized community and eventually
into a community of the future
• Teaching strategies and activities include
role playing, making choices about
colony sites, developing advertisements,
writing persuasive letters, predicting the
community of the future, and developing
land-use graphs
COMMON CORE STANDARDS CORRELATION FOR KALEIDOSCOPE
Standards/Lessons
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Speaking & Listening
SL4.1.a-d, SL.5.1.a-d
SL.4.4, SL.5.4
Common Core
Connections:
RI.4.5, RI.5.5
RI.5.6
RI.5.7
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Reading for Literature
RL.4.1, RL.5.1
RL.4.2, RL.5.2
RL.4.3, RL.5.3
RL.4.6, RL.5.6
RL.5.9
•Reading for
Informational
Texts and
Literature
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Reading for Information
RI.4.9, RI.5.9
•Speaking and
listening
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Number & Operations
in Fractions
4.NF.3, 5.NF.1, 5.NF.2
4.NF.4, 5.NF.4
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Operations & Algebraic
Thinking
4.OA.1, 5.OA.2
4.OA.2, 5.OA.3
4.OA.3
Number & Operations
in Base 10
•Writing
4.NBT.5
4.NBT.6, 5.NBT.6
Writing
W.5.1.a-d
•Math
W.5.2.a-e
W.4.3.a-e, W.5.3.a-e
W.4.4, W.5.4
W.5.5
W.5.6
W.4.7, W.5.7
W.5.9.a-b
W.4.10, W.5.10
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Sample
Lesson: 1650 - Incentives
• Students identify resources needed in the
colonies
• Students explore colonists’ opportunity costs
• Students learn about economic incentives and
their effect on behavior
• Students analyze incentives that motivated
people to settle colonies in the 1600s
• Students write advertisements, based on
particular incentives, to entice particular
people to their colony
Incentives Activity
• Divide into same groups
• Each group is the proprietors of a colony
• Each group reads one of three vignettes about
why some people came to the colonies
• Each group answers these questions:
– Why may the people be willing to leave their home
and move to a new colony?
– What opportunity costs may those people have faced
by moving to a colony?
• Each group develops a written advertisement
using the incentives identified in the vignettes to
entice people to move to its colony
Thanks
• Questions?
• More information:
– UMSL Center for Entrepreneurship and Economic
Education
– 314-516-5248
– econed@umsl.edu
– pcs.umsl.edu/econed