We've collected a number of useful elementary-level economics lessons for you to use with your students.  

Click the button to either download a PDF file of the lesson, or see a page with resources.

Lesson: Alexander Who used to be Rich Last Sunday

GRADES: K-12

CONCEPTS: Opportunity Cost, Saving, Spending

SOURCE: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

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Lesson: Booker T. Washington: “Fifty Cents and a Dream”

GRADES: K-5

CONCEPTS: Capital, Capital Resources, Decision Making, Economic Growth, Human Resources, Income, Job, Productive Resources, Scarcity, Specialization

SOURCE: EconEdLink.org

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Lesson: Bunny Money

GRADES: K-3

CONCEPTS: Goods, Interest, Long-term goals, Saving, Savings goal, Short-term Goals, Spending

SOURCE: Federal Reserve Banks of St. Louis

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Lesson: Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs

GRADES: 2-5

CONCEPTS: Capital Resources, Human Resources, Natural Resources

SOURCE: LibrarySparks

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Lesson: The Colonial Worker’s Web

GRADES: 4-8

CONCEPTS: goods, services, producers, consumers, self-sufficiency, specialization, interdependence, barter

SOURCE: Adventures in Economics and U.S. History, Volume 1

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Lesson: Earth Day-Hooray!

GRADES: K-3

CONCEPTS: Incentives, Penalties, Rewards

SOURCE: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

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Lesson: The Goat in the Rug

GRADES: 1-3

CONCEPTS: Natural Resources, Human Resources, Capital Resources, Intermediate Goods, Producers

SOURCE: Economics and Children’s Literature

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Lesson: How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World

GRADES: 3-5

CONCEPTS: Production, Interdependence, Global Market

SOURCE: Loudon County Public Schools

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Lesson: If you Give a Mouse a Cookie

GRADES: 1-3

CONCEPTS: Unlimited Wants, Goods, Services,

SOURCE: Economics and Children’s Literature

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Lesson: Money, Money, Honey Bunny

GRADES: K-3

CONCEPTS: Wants, Spending

SOURCE: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

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Lesson: One Hen: How One Small Loan Made a Big Difference

Opportunity Cost Lesson

GRADES: 3-5

CONCEPTS: Borrow, Entrepreneurship, Income, Money, Profit, Save

SOURCE: EconEdLink.org

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Lesson: One Hen: How One Small Loan Made a Big Difference

Resource Relay Lesson

GRADES: 3-5

CONCEPTS: Choice, Opportunity Cost

SOURCE: JMU Center for Economic Education

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Lesson: The Pickle Patch Bathtub

GRADES: 3-5

CONCEPTS: Opportunity Cost, Saving, Saving Goal, Saving Plan

SOURCE: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

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Lesson: Potato, A Tale of the Great Depression

GRADES: K-3

CONCEPTS: Barter, Consumers, Goods, Income, Money, Wants

SOURCE: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

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Lesson: Trouble is Brewing in Boston: Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak

GRADES: K-5

CONCEPTS: Choice, Decision Making, Goods, Incentive, Opportunity Cost, Producers, Scarcity, Services, Specialization, Wants

SOURCE: EconEdLink.org

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Lesson: Saturday Sancocho

GRADES: 3-5

CONCEPTS: Barter, Coincidence of Wants, Money

SOURCE: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

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Lesson: Saving Strawberry Farm

GRADES: 3-5

CONCEPTS: Banks, Goods, Services, Saving

SOURCE: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

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Lesson: Something from Nothing

GRADES: 3-5

CONCEPTS: Changes, Opportunity Cost

SOURCE: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

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Lesson: What Pet Should I Get?: Dr. Seuss and Decision Making

GRADES: K-5

CONCEPTS: Choice, Cost/Benefit Analysis, Decision Making, Goods, Opportunity Cost, Scarcity, Services

SOURCE: EconEdLink.org

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Lesson Collections
Lesson Collection: 2017-2018 Reading makes Cent$ Lessons

TITLES: What Pet Should I Get? Whoosh!: Lonnie Johnson’s Super-Soaking Stream of Inventions, Isabel’s Car Wash

GRADES: K-5

CONCEPTS: Choices, Personal Finance, Saving, Budgeting, Incentives, Scarcity, Opportunity Cost, Goods and Services

SOURCE: Virginia Council on Economic Education

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Lesson Collection: 2016-2017 Reading makes Cent$ Lessons

TITLES: Lemonade in Winter, My Rows and Piles of Coins, andRock, Brock, and the Savings Shock

GRADES: K-5

CONCEPTS: Decision-Making, Choices, Personal Finance, Saving, Budgeting, Incentives, Scarcity, Opportunity Cost

SOURCE: Virginia Council on Economic Education

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Lesson Collection: 2015-2016 Reading makes Cent$ Lessons

TITLES: Tia Isa Wants a Car, Helen’s Big World: Life of Helen Keller, Uncle Jed’s Barbershop

GRADES: K-5

CONCEPTS: Personal Finance, Saving, Budgeting, Incentives, Scarcity, Opportunity Cost

SOURCE: Virginia Council on Economic Education

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Lesson Collection: Financial Fables

TITLES: Percy Peacock and the Credit Crisis, Oscar Ostrich Faces the Future, Shopping Wisely With Olivia Owl, Penny Pigeon and the Missing Nest Egg

GRADES: K-5

SOURCE: The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City

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Lesson Collection: Kiddynomics: An Economics Curriculum for Young Learners

TITLES: Betty Bunny Wants Everything, Dr. Seuss’s ABC: An Amazing Alphabet Book!, An Orange in January, You Can’t Buy a Dinosaur with a Dime

GRADES: PK-K

CONCEPTS: Banks, Economics, Money, Personal Finance, Saving

SOURCE: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

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Lesson Collection: Personal Finance Education for Children

GRADES: 3-6

CONCEPTS: Personal Finance, Budgeting, Saving, Investing, Comparison Shopping

SOURCE: Incharge.org

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