Economics in Grade 8 introduces students to how societies use resources, make choices, and balance needs with wants. Through inquiry, learners ask how money circulates, why prices change, and what roles governments and individuals play in economic systems. Instead of only memorizing terms, they explore trade, markets, and global connections by analyzing examples from daily life. Activities such as role-plays, projects, and data interpretation encourage students to think critically about scarcity, opportunity cost, and decision-making. By linking economics to current events and personal experiences, students gain insight into how economic systems shape communities and the world.
🟢 Starter
- Define economics in one sentence.
- List five goods you use every day.
- Write five examples of services in your community.
- Create a short explanation of supply and demand.
- Reflect: why do people trade?
- Identify five examples of scarce resources.
- Compare needs and wants with two examples each.
- Write a paragraph about how money helps exchange.
- List five places where people spend money.
- Explain in two sentences what a market is.
- Create five examples of opportunity costs in school life.
- Write a reflection on why saving is important.
- List five types of jobs in the local economy.
- Compare producers and consumers.
- Reflect: how does economics affect families?
- Write five examples of how technology influences the economy.
- Create a short description of barter.
- Compare public goods and private goods.
- Write a paragraph about the role of banks.
- Reflect: why is choice important in economics?
🟡 Practice
- Write a paragraph on how prices are set in markets.
- Create a chart comparing capitalism and socialism.
- Research five ways inflation affects people.
- Write a reflection on how advertising influences spending.
- Compare local trade and global trade.
- Create a short project about supply chains.
- Write a persuasive paragraph about saving money early.
- Research how taxes are used in your country.
- Create five examples of opportunity cost in daily life.
- Write a paragraph on how businesses compete.
- Compare short-term and long-term economic decisions.
- Write a reflection on why governments regulate markets.
- Research five jobs connected to international trade.
- Create a poster explaining the concept of scarcity.
- Write a paragraph about the importance of entrepreneurship.
- Compare goods, services, and digital products.
- Write a reflection on how the economy affects the environment.
- Research how banks support economic growth.
- Create a project about the role of money in history.
- Reflect: how does economics shape your future choices?
🔴 Challenge
- Write an essay on the importance of economics in society.
- Research how the Great Depression changed economies.
- Debate: should governments control prices?
- Create a project on globalization and its effects.
- Research five consequences of unemployment.
- Write a persuasive essay about fair trade.
- Compare developed and developing economies.
- Write a reflection on how personal choices affect the economy.
- Research how stock markets influence businesses.
- Debate: should education about money be mandatory in schools?
- Create a presentation on sustainable economics.
- Research how wars impact economies.
- Write a reflection on how innovation drives growth.
- Compare planned economies and market economies.
- Write a short story about a society without money.
- Research five careers related to economics.
- Write a poem about scarcity and choice.
- Debate: is inequality unavoidable in economies?
- Write a reflection on how economics connects to politics.
- Propose five new ways schools can make economics engaging.