Help Kids Understand the Financial Crisis
Every day we hear alarming news about the economy, the stock market, and the financial crisis. Finding the age-appropriate language and providing context for discussing this topic with your students is a challenge many teachers face.
In this special collection, you'll find advice on how to talk to your students and ideas on how to incorporate this topic into your curriculum.
The lesson plans and activities offer ways to teach your students basic economic principles and money skills in real-world situations. Give your students a historical perspective on the current situation by studying the Great Depression in the 1930s.
The Scholastic News Economy for Kids Special Report helps your students make sense of the economy, how it works, and what makes it such a vital part of our lives. Stay tuned for more coverage about the economy and how it's affecting your world.
Articles
by Adele M. Brodkin PhD
Scholastic News Online | October 17,2008
Find suggestions for how to talk to your students about the current economic crisis facing the United States and the world.
How to Talk to Your Kids About the Economy
by Adele M. Brodkin PhD
Parent & Child |
Wall Street. Main Street. Unemployment. Recession. Should you bring up the subject of a troubled economy? Here is advice you can share with parents.
Between Teacher & Parent: "My Daddy Has No More Job"
by Adele M. Brodkin PhD
Early Childhood Today |
January ,2002
Child psychologist Adele Brodkin offers suggestions for teachers and parents for helping a child whose parent recently lost a job.
by Toby Leah Bochan
Scholastic Parents | It's a good idea to sit down with your students and find out what they know about money matters. Asking, "Do you know what the stock market is?" or simply, "What do you think about money?" is a perfect way to spark a conversation.
Scholastic News Online | October 22,2008
Use the Scholastic News Online Special Report on the economy to help students understand both general economic terms and the roots of the current crisis.
Scholastic News Online | October 22,2008
Use the Scholastic News Online Special Report on the economy to help students understand both general economic terms and the roots of the current crisis.
Money Meanings
Scholastic News Online |
A glossary of monetary terms to help kids understand the stock market and the banking industry. For grades 5-8.
by Karen Kellaher
Scholastic News Online | February 2,2008
A glossary of economic terms to help kids better understand the economy and the current economic crisis. For grades 5-8.
Budget Basics
Scholastic News Online |
The holidays are a time of year that hits everyone right in the wallet. Teach your students how to create a budget for buying gifts for friends and family and still pick up presents for themselves. For grades 5-8.
Money and You: Lesson Helpers
Scholastic News Online |
Students can track an imaginary stock purchase over one week. Or, solve math word problems to find out if they are a smart shopper. For grades 5-8.
Resources
Bud, Not Buddy Discussion Guide
Bud, Not Buddy tells the story of a young boy who lives in Michigan during the Great Depression, a time of great hardship for many Americans. For grades 4-7.
Out of the Dust Discussion Guide
A poem cycle that reads as a novel, Out of the Dust tells the story of a girl named Billie Jo, who struggles to help her family survive the Dust Bowl years of the Depression. For grades 4-7.
Activities
The meltdown on Wall Street and Washington's rescue plan left many Americans worried -- and scratching their heads. This article from The New York Times Upfront magazine help you make sense of what's happened. For grades 9-12.
Scholastic News Online | Play word scramble and word search games with vocabulary words you need to know when talking about the economy. For grades 5-8.
Read about how people endured the hardships caused by the 1930s stock market crash in Scholastic's Our America series. For grades 3-8.
Watch the slide show to learn more about the Great Depression. Then, write a journal entry as if you were there. For grades 5-8.
Choose your cabinet and set your budget, but be prepared to explain your decisions to the press! Experience the job of President. For grades 3-8.
Lesson Plans
by Beth Newingham
Students will use a class store model to learn about economic concepts like saving, opportunity cost, supply and demand, and inflation. For grades 3-5.
Help your students understand the history of the Great Depression while practicing letter writing and determining cause and effect. For grades 3-5.
Journal of Time: A Historical Perspective
Allow students to take on the point of view of someone living during the Great Depression, which is the setting of the book Esperanza Rising, by providing photographs as inspiration for a journal entry. For grades 5-8.
Number Smarts!
Help your students learn the basics about money, making smart spending decisions, and saving money. For grades 4-5.
