Economics · Lesson Plan

Classroom Economy Introduction

This is Lesson 1 of MoneyInstructor-nomics, a hands-on classroom economy unit where students earn classroom currency at a job, pay taxes, and eventually open their own business. The introduction lays out the rationale for a mini-economy, previews the full 13-topic unit — from attaching value to currency through closing the economy with an auction — and includes a ready-to-send letter to parents. It’s the on-ramp for the entire MoneyInstructor-nomics series.

Grades 3–8 Lesson Plan Unit kickoff Free Lesson Plan Lesson: Full Membership

Classroom economy introduction lesson illustration

For Teachers

Lesson at a glance

Topic: Economics
Grade Level: Grades 3–8
Resource Type: Lesson + Worksheet
Estimated Time: Unit kickoff
Format: Lesson plan + parent letter
Materials: Printable lesson, activity sheet, classroom currency

What Students Learn

Learning objectives

Explain why a classroom economy helps students learn economics by living it
Preview the topics of the MoneyInstructor-nomics unit
Understand how classroom currency, jobs, and businesses fit together
Set expectations for students and families
Prepare to launch the unit

Materials

What you’ll need

Printed introduction lesson and parent letter
Classroom currency (MoneyInstructor-Bucks) to introduce later
Plan for classroom jobs and a class store
Whiteboard for the unit overview

Key Terms

Vocabulary

Classroom economy: A simulated mini-economy run inside the classroom.
Currency: The money students earn and spend in the classroom economy.
Entrepreneur: A student who starts and runs a classroom business.
Income tax: A tax collected on the pay students earn at their classroom job.
Goods and services: The products and work students will produce and sell.
Free enterprise: An economic system where people are free to start businesses.

For Teachers

Lesson plan

Estimated time: use as the unit kickoff before Lesson 2.

Lesson sequence

Set the scene (10 min). Read the opening classroom-economy vignette and discuss what students are doing — shopping, negotiating, producing, paying taxes.
Rationale (10 min). Explain why a mini-economy helps students learn and remember economic concepts by experiencing them first-hand.
Preview the unit (10 min). Walk through the 13 MoneyInstructor-nomics topics, from attaching value to currency through closing the economy with an auction.
Send the parent letter. Send home the included letter so families understand the unit and the upcoming MoneyInstructor Bazaar.

Assessment

Informal — check that students understand how the unit will work and are ready to launch the economy.

Discussion

Discussion questions

What is a classroom economy, and why might it help you learn?
What kinds of jobs could you do to earn classroom currency?
What does it mean to be an entrepreneur?
Why do people pay taxes in an economy?
What good or service might you want to produce and sell?

Printable Lesson Plan & Parent Letter