Grade 7: Unit 3: Lesson 1

Wants and Needs: Scarcity

Long-Term Targets Addressed

I can use economic principles to explain how markets affect individual choices. (CDE.7.3.1)

Supporting Learning Targets Ongoing Assessment

• I can explain the concept of scarcity and how it applies to individual behavior. • Main Idea Learning Log

Agenda Teaching Notes

1. Opening: •
A. “Birthday Present” wish list (5 minutes)
B. Introducing Learning Targets (3 minutes)
C. Mini-Lesson: Economics and Scarcity (5 minutes)
2. Work Time
A. Vocabulary: Scarcity, Economics, Opportunity Cost
B. Read and annotate “What is Economics” (10
minutes)
C. Economics problem sets for scarcity (10 minutes)
3. Closing and Assessment
A. Main Idea Learning Log (5 minutes)
4. Homework: Economics problem sets for scarcity

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 Grade 7: Unit 3: Lesson 1
Wants and Needs: Scarcity

Lesson Vocabulary and Concepts Materials

Economics, scarcity, opportunity cost • Projector, computer using power point, attached supplemental materials.

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 Grade 7: Unit 3: Lesson 1
Wants and Needs: Scarcity

Opening Meeting Students’ Needs

A. Listing gifts we want and gift we will realistically get (5 minutes) • Note that it is not necessary that
• Display the “Do Now” opening activity for students students completely understand the
• Ask students to answer the Do Now in complete sentences, making sure that they answer both questions. concepts of scarcity and opportunity
cost at the close of the mini-lesson,
• After 4 minutes, allow students to think-share-pair with a partner. Listen for students to explain both what they want and
look for students who are below a
what they would actually expect to get.
“three” on the fist-to-five in order
• Refocus the attention of the class and ask is there anyone who had a partner who had a list that was different that what to provide additional guided
they expected to get? If so why do you think so? practice during work time.

B. Introduce Learning Targets (5 minutes)

• Explain to students that they will be studying about economics in this unit. Say the learning target: I can explain the
concept of scarcity and how it applies to individual behavior.
• Tell students that they will learn what scarcity and economics are soon but that they should pay special attention to how
these concepts will be related to individuals and their behavior.
• Have students think-pair-share about what determines an individual’s behavior. Tell students that you will use equity
sticks to hold them accountable for their brainstorming.
• Use equity sticks to call pairs of students and elicit their responses, record the responses on the board.
• Guide students to the understanding that behavior is often determined by the choices that an individual makes.
C. Mini Lesson: Economics and Scarcity (5 minutes)
• Display power point titled: Economics and Scarcity
• Explain to students that a main idea in Economics is scarcity. Explain that scarcity is when there is more want for goods
than there are amount of goods available.
• Ask students to think up examples of goods or resources that might be scarce. Use equity sticks to fields some responses
for scarce goods.
• Explain that some of the most important scarce goods include, natural resources, food, and water.
• Finally, discuss opportunity cost; explain that opportunity cost is whatever you give up when you make a choice. And that
because of scarcity individuals are constantly confronted with choices and opportunity costs.
• Use Fist-to-Five to gauge student understanding of the terms.

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 Grade 7: Unit 3: Lesson 1
Wants and Needs: Scarcity

Work Time Meeting Students’ Needs

A. Vocabulary (10 minutes) • Consider providing ELL’s with a

• Model: display the Vocabulary Elaboration on the board. word bank from which to choose
• Explain that the sentence “The opportunity cost of an action is the value of the best alternative not taken” is a correct and during the vocabulary paraphrasing.
specific description. Tell the students This is a pretty complex definition, to make sure I understand the key words I am
going to paraphrase it a few times.”
• Model for students the thinking involved in changing such words as “action” to “choice” and “alternative” to “option.” Now
write the new sentence for students to see “The opportunity cost of a choice is the value of the best choice not taken.”
Explain that this new definition is simpler but that you think you could make it clear by paraphrasing the whole thing into
your own words.
• Model for students the thinking involved in paraphrasing the second sentence into a totally different sentence. Tell
students: I think I am going to think less about substituting the words and instead try to write a sentence based off of what
this sentence means, I might also try to make it more personal so I remember it. Its talking about choices, and options so I
think I will say “When I make a choice, there is something else that I could have chosen that I am giving up, and this is
called opportunity cost.” Explain to students that this new sentence is different than that original in many ways, such as
omitting the idea of value, but that you feel it is now more clear than the original.
• Have students complete the process with a partner for the sentence about “scarcity.” Remind students to begin by
substituting simpler words and end by putting it completely in their own words but keep the basic meaning.
B. Reading “What is Economics” (10 minutes)
• Read the text aloud to students; encourage students to silently read as you read aloud.
• When you have finished reading ask the students to work with a partner to determine what the author seems to what the
reader to know or understand. Probe further into student thinking by adding “how do you know? What details can you find
in the text to support the main idea?
• Students should record the main idea and any details that support the main idea in their notebooks or on paper. Have
students share what they believe the main idea of the text is with someone other than their partner.
C. Practice
• Provide students with Scarcity and Opportunity Cost practice questions.

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 Grade 7: Unit 3: Lesson 1
Wants and Needs: Scarcity

Closing and Assessment Meeting Students’ Needs

A. Main Idea Learning Log (5 minutes) • If students seem to have a vague

• Have students write in their notebooks what the main idea of today’s lesson was and a detail that would support their main answer, prompt them by telling
idea. them that using the term scarcity
* As students write, walk around and observe their writing. Look for terms such as scarcity, opportunity cost, and might guide their thinking about the
economics. main idea of the lesson

Homework Meeting Students’ Needs

• None

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 Grade 7: Unit 3: Lesson 1
Wants and Needs: Scarcity

DO NOW: Imagine that you have birthday coming up and that you know that you will get presents
and gifts.
1. Take a minute to list all the gifts you would like to get.
2. Take a minute to think and decide which gifts you are realistically likely to receive.

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 Grade 7: Unit 3: Lesson 1
Wants and Needs: Scarcity

Vocabulary Elaboration: Paraphrase

1. “The opportunity cost of an action is the value of the best alternative not taken”

2. “The opportunity cost of a choice is the value of the best choice not taken.”

3. “When I make a choice, there is something else that I could have chosen that I am giving up,
and this is called opportunity cost.”

Paraphrase the following sentence:

“Scarcity exists when the amount of goods that people want exceeds the amount available.”

1. ___________________________________________________________________________
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2. ___________________________________________________________________________
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 Grade 7: Unit 3: Lesson 1
Wants and Needs: Scarcity

What is Economics?

Pretend that it is Friday night and you have three different ways to spend your time. 1) You could go
to a friend’s party, 2) you could go to a movie, or 3) stay home and play a board game with your
parents. Since you do not have time to do all of these things at the same time, you will have to make
a choice. Which would you choose?

Economics is all about making choices when faced with options. In the 3 options from the first
paragraph, time was the resource that was scarce. Making a choice between many options when you
cannot have them all is the main idea behind economics. Each day everyone thinks like an economist
without knowing it. For example, Should you buy the latest X-Box game or save your money for
something you might want tomorrow?

The answers to these questions will differ for different people. Why? Well, one reason is that we are
all not the same. The choices people make depend on their life. A choice that is right for you might
not be the best choice for your friend. One of the biggest lessons of economics is that there are many
possible choices for everyone.

Economics also studies choices that groups of people or societies make. For example, if the State of
Colorado decides to use tax dollars to fix the roads instead of using it to build a park, then the state is
making an economic choice. Similarly, when a business chooses to put money into advertising
instead of giving the workers more money, they are again making an economic decision.

Economics is the study of how people use resources to sell or buy goods to get what they want.
When people choose one option over another, they suffer what is known as an opportunity cost.
Opportunity Cost is the best option that you gave up in order to get your first choice. For example, if
you are at a soccer game and only have enough money for one snack and choose to buy a slice of
pizza instead of a hot dog, your opportunity cost is the hot dog. The hot dog is what you gave up in
order to have your first choice – the pizza. Opportunity Cost = Second Place Choice.

Think back to the Friday night example in the first paragraph. Your choices were that you could go to
a friend’s party, go to a movie, or stay home and play games with your parents. What did you
choose? What was your opportunity cost? Remember, that would be the next best alternative (what
was in second place?). This is the problem of scarcity -- unlimited wants and limited options.

Adapted From: Oakland Rubicon Atlas. Landsburg, Steven E. Fair Play: What Your Child Can Teach You
About Economics, Values
 Grade 7: Unit 3: Lesson 1
Wants and Needs: Scarcity

Scarcity and Opportunity Cost practice questions

Problem #1

Recently Commerce City purchased a new bus. They had a choice between a smaller fuel-efficient bus
and a larger bus that would last longer but would get fewer miles per gallon of gasoline. The city
chose the larger bus because the overall cost was less. A letter to the local newspaper attacked the city
for not choosing the smaller fuel-efficient bus, saying the city had no concern for our scarce resources.

1A: Do you agree with the writer of the letter, or the city? Why?

1B: What are the scarce resources involved in this problem?

Problem #2

In the past, homeowners did not insulate their houses because the cost of the insulation was greater
than the cost of the fuel saved.

2. What are the scarce resources involved in this problem?

Problem #3

3. Some people say that the United State should go back to a military draft because the volunteer army
is too expensive. Suppose we returned to a draft system and paid new soldiers $95 per month instead
of the $400 that volunteer soldier make.

3A: Which is cheaper for society when there are currently 20,000 volunteers in the army and 30,000
draft soldiers would replace them? Why?

3B: If the army currently has 20,000 volunteers, what number of draft soldiers would make it more
expensive for society to replace the volunteers with draft soldiers.

Problem #4

A local farmer decides to build a new gymnasium for children on top of his cornfield. A local
newspaper prints a story with the headline “gymnasium kids win but community loses”

4. Do you agree with this statement, why?

 Grade 7: Unit 3: Lesson 1
Wants and Needs: Scarcity

Problem #5

5 Imagine that it is the end of the day and two children are waiting in a line for a free ice cream cone,
they get to the window and only one child gets a cone. Explain to them using the term scarcity why
only one of them got a cone.

Problem #6

Suppose that an ice-cream truck is pulling up offering free ice cream, there is also a kids’ soccer game
about to start, two kids are in line. One kid really wants to play soccer and one kid doesn’t really want
to play soccer at all.

6 If both kids stand in line to get the ice cream cone, which kid has the larger opportunity cost? Why?

Problem #7

You are in line at McDonald’s, you have $1 and you want both a hamburger for $1 and a Soda for $1.
If you choose the hamburger, what is your opportunity cost?
 Grade 7: Unit 3: Lesson 1
Wants and Needs: Scarcity

Main Idea Learning Log

What was the main idea of today’s lesson? What details support your main idea?

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