Budgeting · Video Lesson
Impulse Buying? A Dog Orders a Chocolate Bar
A short, high-engagement lesson starter on impulse buying. Using a fun video of a dog “ordering” a chocolate bar as a hook, students explore what impulse buying is, how stores and online retailers are designed to encourage it, and how telling needs from wants helps them spend on purpose instead of on impulse.
For Teachers
Lesson at a glance
- Topic
- Budgeting
- Grade Level
- Grades 7–12
- Resource Type
- Video Lesson + Worksheet
- Estimated Time
- 20–30 minutes
- Format
- Lesson starter + class discussion
- Materials
- Video, worksheet, whiteboard
What Students Learn
Learning objectives
- Define impulse buying and give examples from everyday life
- Explain how stores and websites are designed to trigger impulse purchases
- Distinguish needs from wants when making a spending decision
- Describe how small impulse purchases add up and affect saving and budgeting
- Identify simple habits that reduce impulse spending
Video Lesson
Watch: Impulse Buying? A Dog Orders a Chocolate Bar
Materials
What you’ll need
- Internet access for the video
- Printed copies of the worksheet (one per student)
- Whiteboard or projector for the discussion
- Optional: store flyers or screenshots showing checkout-aisle product placement
Key Terms
Vocabulary
- Impulse buying
- Purchasing something on the spur of the moment, without planning or thinking through the consequences.
- Need
- Something required to live, such as food, housing, or basic clothing.
- Want
- Something you would like to have but can live without.
- Budget
- A plan for how you will spend and save your money.
- Savings
- Money you set aside instead of spending, often toward a goal.
- Marketing
- The strategies businesses use to encourage people to buy their products.
For Teachers
Lesson plan
Estimated time: one 20–30 minute starter, or longer with the extension.
Lesson sequence
- Hook (3 min). Play the short video of a dog “ordering” a chocolate bar. Ask: was this a need or a want? Did anyone — dog included — think it through first?
- Define it (7 min). Build a class definition of impulse buying. Ask students for examples, from a candy bar at the register to a bigger spur-of-the-moment purchase.
- Why it happens (7 min). Discuss how stores place tempting items at checkout and how websites use “buy now” buttons, countdown timers, and one-click ordering to encourage impulse purchases.
- Needs vs. wants (5 min). Sort a quick list of purchases into needs and wants as a class, and connect the habit to budgeting and saving.
- Worksheet (5–8 min). Students complete the short worksheet based on the video.
Extension activity
- The 24-hour rule. Students track wants they feel like buying this week, wait 24 hours, and note how many they still want afterward.
Assessment
Assess participation in the discussion and the completed worksheet.
Discussion
Discussion questions
- What is the difference between a need and a want? Give an example of each from your own life.
- How do stores and websites try to get you to buy on impulse?
- How can a series of small impulse purchases affect your savings over time?
- What is one habit you could use to slow down before making a purchase?
- When, if ever, is an impulse purchase a reasonable choice?
Printable Worksheet
Impulse Buying — Student Worksheet
Short-answer worksheet based on the video for students to complete and discuss.
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