The Economy — Lesson 208

Economic Cycles

Students are given economic terms and determine if they reflect a 'bull market' or 'bear market'.  They then create posters using pictures and words to reflect economic cycles.

What Students Learn

  • What is an economic upturn (boom) or downturn (bust/recession)?
  • Why kids should care about economic cycles?
  • It’s all about timing (buy low sell high)

Suggested Time

  • Preview and Episode Viewing: 45 minutes
  • Activity 1: 20 minutes
  • Activity 2: 20 minutes
Middle School Lesson Plan High School Lesson Plan

Sketch: As the Economy Turns

Clips for this Lesson

Sketch: As the Economy Turns
A man in a suit.
Sketch: King of KaChing
A woman sitting at a table.
BK Hosts: Economic Cycles
A boy is holding a machine in a cave.
Young Entrepreneur: Country Boy Goldmine
Three men going to play paint ball
Young Entrepreneur: Running Wild Paintball

Lessons in The Economy

Copule are talking to each other
Lesson

The Value of Money

What Students Learn

  • Considering all the global currencies, what determines the value of money? What are the factors that impact the American Dollar?
Portrait of a woman face
Lesson

Money Moves

What Students Learn

  • Follow a dollar bill as it moves from a depositor’s hand, to the bank vault, over to the Federal Reserve, and finally out to a project the bank is financing.
Woman at the tree shop
Lesson

The Global Economy

What Students Learn

  • Go around the world and follow the flow of imports and exports that make up the interconnected world economy.
Lesson

Economic Cycles

What Students Learn

  • Economic cycles go up and down. Learn how to protect yourself against negative effects and plan for the positive trends.
Macro Monster Movie clip with a roaring monster
Lesson

The Economics of Economics

What Students Learn

  • See how businesses use economic principles to make financial decisions, from micro to macro economics, supply and demand, and economic indicators.