Introduction
Goods and services play a very important role in our economy. We cannot speak of goods and services without talking about how resources are used in order to meet our material needs. This lesson will explore the understanding of goods and services, and provide students with the opportunity to be producers and consumers in their community.
Task
Students will visit several websites to learn more about how people utilize goods and services to meet their needs. After exploring the sites, students will be asked to complete one of three tasks. One task involves a paragraph description about goods and services, following an illustration to support the writing activity. The second task entails choosing a service project to participate in, and responding to several journal enrty questions. With the last task, the students are expected to do a little research in order to do a presentation about a product produced in the state of Georgia.
Process
Task 1:
Visit the links below to watch the videos and to check out the websites to learn more about goods and services.
https://youtu.be/uRcAFS-0wpE?list=PLGflbouZ6YXAjaRjNk3CEWSeZ68DqMeoA
http://www.socialstudiesforkids.com/articles/economics/goodsandservices1.htm
Task 2:
Choose only one (1) of the three items below to complete:
- In your own words write a paragraph describing the difference between goods and services by including examples to make your point. Next, create a poster illustrating the difference between goods and services. You may use a magazine to cut out pictures or words to make your poster interesting and fun!
- Visit http://kidworldcitizen.org/2013/02/20/35-service-projects-for-kids/ and choose a service project that you are interested in doing. (If you have a service project of your own that is not listed and you would like to do it, you may do so.)
- While doing the project of your choice, get someone to take pictures of you doing the service project. If no pictures are involved, you may find another way to show proof of how you were able to complete your project.
- After you are done with the project, write a journal entry about your service project by answering these questions:
What service project did you choose, and why did you choose it?
What did you learn from the service project?
Could you have done anything different to make your service project better?
Would you recommend your service project to a friend? Why or why not?
3. Visit http://www.usalovelist.com/10-products-we-love-made-in-georgia/ and choose a product (goods) that is produced in your state Georgia to research and to give a presentation. In your presentation, please include the name of the product, the inventor (if any), and the city it is produced in. You may present in person, or you may choose to do a PowerPoint presentation.
Evaluation
Student work will be evaluated based on the expectation of the chosen task.
Task 1 Checklist:
- Paragraph includes a clear difference in understanding of goods and services.
- One or more example is included to support understanding of goods and services.
- Poster clearly illustrates the difference between goods and services.
Task 2 Checklist:
- Service project description is clearly understood.
- Reason for choosing service project is included in journal.
- Pictures or proof of service project is included in journal.
- Learning/experiences from service project are included in journal.
- Idea/ideas to improve project are included in journal.
- Recommendation to a friend is included.
Task 3 Checklist:
- A product was chosen from the website.
- Presentation includes name of product, inventor and city.
- Other facts about the product are researched and included in presentation.
- Pictures or product is presented to class.
Conclusion
This lesson helps to extend the understanding of goods and services, and it provides students with transferable knowledge and the ability to apply their learning to practical life situations. After this lesson, students will be able understand themselves better as consumers and producers in their community.