This document provides content and standards for an interdisciplinary vocabulary lesson on economics concepts. It includes three social studies standards about scarcity, characteristics of money, and buyers and sellers exchanging goods and services through trade or money. Key vocabulary words are defined. Two fiction texts and one informational article are provided as examples to investigate these concepts. Questions are posed to help analyze the texts and relate them to the standards. Other online sources on trade, bartering and money are also listed for students to explore. Finally, students are instructed to create a comic strip demonstrating how scarcity results in trade.

1. D A Y A N A D U V A L
R E D 6 5 4 5
D R . J O S E P H
Interdisciplinary Vocabulary
Strategies

2. Content
 THIRD GRADE STANDARD SS.3.E.1.1 Standard 1:
Beginning Economics
Give examples of how scarcity results in trade.
 STANDARD SS.3.E.1.2 Standard 1: Beginning
Economics
List the characteristics of money.
 STANDARD SS.3.E.1.3 Standard 1: Beginning
Economics
Recognize that buyers and sellers interact to exchange
goods and services through the use of trade or money.

3. Disciplinary Content Vocabulary
 Scarcity
 Trade
 Goods
 Services
 Buyers
 Sellers
 Money

4. Standards: CCSS
 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.1: Read Closely-Evidence & Inferences
 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.9 Analyze how two or more texts address similar topics
 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.4 Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text
 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.SL.2 Integrate and evaluate information presented in diverse media
and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally
 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.SL.5 Make strategic use of digital media and visual displays of data to
express information and enhance understanding of presentations
 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.2 Write informative/explanatory texts
 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.6 Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish
writing and to interact and collaborate with others.
 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.L.4 Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-
meaning words and phrases by using context clues, analyzing meaningful word parts, and
consulting general and specialized reference materials, as appropriate.
 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.L.6 Acquire and use accurately a range of general academic and
domain-specific words and phrases sufficient for reading, writing, speaking, and listening

5. Investigate: Text 1 Fiction
 Text: Bunny Money ~ By Rosemary Wells

6. Investigate: Text 1 Fiction
Text: Bunny Money ~ By Rosemary Wells
Explain how Max and Ruby could get a birthday present for
Grandma.
They could save their money.
List all the ways Max and Ruby spent their money.
Bus fare, oozing cheery vampire teeth, soap, washer, dryer, peanut
butter and jelly sandwich, coconut cupcakes, banana shake, bluebird
earrings, glow-in-the-dark vampire teeth, telephone call.
Give examples of goods and services.
Goods - music box, vampire teeth, sandwich, cupcakes, shake,
earrings;
Services - riding the bus, using the laundromat.

7. Investigate: Text 1 Fiction
Text: Bunny Money ~ By Rosemary Wells
Explain Ruby's comment, "Money is running through
our fingers, Max."
They were spending all their money too quickly.
Explain why they could not buy the music box.
The music box cost $100; they only had $5 left.
Explain how Max and Ruby could have had more money
to spend on the gift.
They could have saved their money instead of spending it on all
the other goods.
Identify all the different units of money they saved and
spent.
One-dollar bill, five-dollar bill, quarter.

8. Investigate: Informational Text
Article: Trade You Snickers For Smarties’: The
Economics of Halloween Candy
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2011/11/01/141901
960/trade-you-snickers-for-smarties-the-economics-
of-halloween-candy
 Describe how the children trade their Halloween
candy. Why do they trade?
 How does Lauryn deal with her excess supply of
candy?
 Provide examples and explain how scarcity results in
trade.

9. Investigate: Other Sources
 Video: Watch the “Swapsies” Movie on Wow Zone to discover
how money is used to exchange for goods and services.
http://www.tdbank.com/wowzone/kids/wowza.html
 Explain why the kids choose to trade instead of buy new things?
 What is bartering?
 How did people barter in the past?
 If people can barter, why do they choose to use money instead?
 Why do people use banks?
 Why is the scooter cheaper this year than it was last year when it
first came out?

10. Report
 Create a Comic Strip to show and explain how scarcity
results in trade.
 http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/interacti
ves
/comic/
 Students will apply what they have learned about scarcity
and trading. They will create a comic strip that includes
fictional characters with a scarcity problem. The
characters will solve their problem by trading something
of equal value to show and explain how scarcity results in
trade.