Economics20,30

1) [|Media Literacy Article] This article describes "Literacy for the 21st Century" which supports critical thinking and creative communication. The article explains that literacy today doesn't just include words on a piece of paper but now is through powerful images and sounds in our multi-media culture. Media literacy teaches students how to identify key concepts, make connections between multiple ideas, ask pertinent questions, formulate responses, identify fallacies that form the foundation of intellectual freedom, and exercise being a full citizen in a democratic society. I would use this resource in an Economics class to help students analyze media messages and decipher how they are constructed. This would help students understand how media targets certain audiences, decides on techniques to attract attention, uses persuasion and emotion, and omits and includes information in a text. This is important in Economics classes because it will help students understand the roles of producers and consumers. For an assignment students could be required to decipher an ad/commercial by described who created the message and why, who the target audience is, what economic decisions influenced the construction of the message, the reasons an individual may have for being interested in the message, and how different people would interpret the message differently. Since producers are constantly trying to sell their products/ideas to our students its important for them to realize how they go about doing this. This is an effective teacher resource.

2) [|Canadian Foundation for Economic Education] This link doesn't go to the exact page. You need to click on "CFEE Resources" and then "The Canadian Economy" and open the PDF. This is a teacher resource that would help me as I teach Economics 20. The resource provides definitions of terms and provides examples. It explains the economy including the different sectors) production and resources flow, the market, etc. and provides a "big picture" diagram. I would use this to help create notes for my students and I would use this "big picture" as a way to describe how Economics works in Canada. This is an effective teacher resource and I especially liked that it is Canadian which is important to have in the classroom since our economy does differ from the United States.

3) [|If You Give A Mouse A Cookie - Laura Numeroff] I would use this book as a way to introduce basic Economics 20 terms. The book discusses causes and effects based on the story of the mouse. This would be a great way to spark discussion between students on what are some causes and effects in their everyday life. In the economic world everything has a cause and an effect and it is important for students to recognize and know the consequences of every action. This could lead into bigger discussions such as the effects of not abiding to a contract or late bill payments. Another topic the book could lead to is supply and demand. This would be a book for a teacher to read to their students.