Challenges to Growth 🌱

🎯 Learning Targets

• Explain how many developing nations respond to scarce factors of production
• Describe how the status of economic infrastructure can help and hinder a developing nation
• Explain how political instability can challenge a developing nation

⏰ What We Did

• Used instructional notes from Lesson 11, Part 3: Challenges to Growth, to describe the characteristics — and location — of developing nations
• Analyzed the advantages and disadvantages of American foreign aid to these countries

⚙️ Resources

• Understanding Economic Development (A-23)
• Per Capita GDP World Map (World Bank, 2021)
• 8 Serious Pros and Cons of Foreign Aid (Green Garage)

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 11, Part 4: Paths to Economic Development, before the Semester Exam
• Watch and take notes on Lesson 11, Part 5: Poverty and Income Distribution, before the Semester Exam

Economic Development 🏗️

D-Day — Allied Invasion of Normany (1944) 🇺🇸

🎯 Learning Targets

• Explain how many developing nations respond to scarce factors of production
• Describe how the status of an economic infrastructure can help and hinder a developing nation
• Explain how political instability can challenge a developing nation

⏰ What We Did

• Calculated per capita GDP for ten countries
• Classified each of the ten countries by their per capita GDP on a provided scale

⚙️ Resources

• Calculating Per Capita GDP (A-22)

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 11, Part 3: Challenges to Growth, before class on Monday

CJ Barrymore's Junior Class Trip 🎢

Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1985) 🚘

⏰ What We Did

• The Junior class was on a trip to C.J. Barrymore's today; Used today as a study hall for those remaining in class

Types of Economic Systems 🌎

🎯 Learning Targets

• Explain how the three basic economic questions are answered in traditional, command, and market economies
• Describe the roles of self-interest and incentives in a market economy
• Summarize the types of mixed economies that exist today

⏰ What We Did

• Collected last Wednesday's Lesson 9 Lesson Review
• Watched and took instructional notes on Lesson 11, Part 1: Types of Economic Systems
• Used the Lesson 11, Part 1 instructional notes to describe how the three basic economic questions are answered in each of the pure economic models
• Defined the three mixed economic systems and provided examples of current nations for each
• Used an example of owning two cows to describe each economic system, both pure and mixed

⚙️ Resources

• Lesson 11 Instructional Notes
• Lesson 11, Part 1: Types of Economic Systems
• The Tale of Two Cows (Cardsort)
• Examining Mixed Economies (A-21)

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 11, Part 2: Economic Development, before class on Friday

Lesson 10 Lesson Review 🔟

🎯 Learning Targets

• Review key concepts raised in Lesson 10

⏰ What We Did

• Took a quiz on Lesson 10, Part 2: The Growth of Labor Unions
• Completed Lesson 10 Lesson Review

⚙️ Resources

• Lesson 10 Lesson Review (LR-10)

Unions and Management 🪧

🎯 Learning Targets

• Identify the major issues discussed by labor contract negotiations
• Summarize how union and management reach a contract agreement
• Explain the negotiation tactics used by unions and management

⏰ What We Did

• To gain background for today's assignment, watched a Teamsters-produced video on the 1997 UPS Strike
• To gain further background for today's assignment, read a CNN article about the end of the 1997 UPS Strike
• Examined contract negotiations through a 1997 UPS strike-inspired editorial cartoon and created a political cartoon expressing an opposing view

⚙️ Resources

• Economics Binder Portal (Binder Check on day of semester exam, W 11 June 2025)
• America's Victory: The 1997 UPS Strike (International Brotherhood of Teamsters)
• "It's Official: Teamsters End UPS Strike" (CNN, Aug 20, 1997)
• Examining Labor Issues (A-20)

The Growth of Labor Unions ✊

👷‍♀️ 🎯 Learning Targets

• Explain how labor unions developed
• Describe how labor unions are organized
• Summarize the main challenges facing unions today
• Describe how government attitudes toward labor unions have changed

⏰ What We Did

• Used instructional notes from Lesson 10, Part 2: The Growth of Labor Unions, to answer the following questions in complete sentences:

1. Define labor union, open shop, and closed shop.
2. What conditions led to the development of labor unions?
3. How do national unions support local unions?
4. What are the main reasons for declining union membership? How have unions responded?
5. In your opinion, how should the government interact with unions? Should it be supportive, regulatory, or confrontational? Explain your answer.

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 10, Part 3: Unions and Management, before class on Monday

The U.S. Labor Force 👷‍♀️

🎯 Learning Targets

• Describe factors that affect workers entering the labor force
• Explain how the U.S. labor force has changed over time
• Analyze how the U.S. government affects labor

⏰ What We Did

• Watched and took instructional notes on Lesson 10, Part 1: The U.S. Labor Force
• Calculated wages and salaries from story problems

⚙️ Resources

• Lesson 10 Instructional Notes
• Lesson 10, Part 1: The U.S. Labor Force
• Computing Wages (A-19)

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 10, Part 2: The Growth of Labor Unions, before class tomorrow

Lesson 9 Lesson Review 9️⃣

Late Start Day 🕣

🎯 Learning Targets

• Review key concepts raised in Lesson 9

⏰ What We Did

• Briefly discussed the main ideas of Lesson 9, Part 6: Fiscal Policy and the Federal Budget
• Took a quiz on Lesson 9, Part X: X
• Began working on Lesson 9 Lesson Review (Due W 4 June 2025)

⚙️ Resources

• Budget of the United States Government (Office of Management and Budget)
• National Debt and Deficit (USDebtClock.org)

• Lesson 9 Lesson Review (LR-9)

Fiscal Policy Strategies 💵

🎯 Learning Targets

• Explain how the federal budget is developed
• Identify what role deficit spending plays in the economy
• Describe the methods the government can use to balance the federal budget

⏰ What We Did

• Used instructional notes from Lesson 9, Part 6 — and internet resources — to compare the principles of supply-side and demand-side economics
• Researched and identified the aspects of the Laffer Curve, a prominent piece of supply-side economics

⚙️ Resources

• Understanding Supply-Side and Demand-Side Economics (A-18)

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 9, Part 6: Fiscal Policy and the Federal Budget, before class tomorrow

Memorial Day — No School 🇺🇸

Clintondale High School is closed for Memorial Day. Classes will resume on Tuesday, May 27, 2025, at 7:35 A.M.

Inflation 💸

🎯 Learning Targets

• Explain how economists evaluate price changes over time
• Describe what causes inflation
• Identify the two main price indexes that economists use to measure inflation
• Explain how inflation affects the economy

⏰ What We Did

• Examined an economics-focused political cartoon to identify the different types of inflation

⚙️ Resources

• Analyzing Economic Challenges (A-17)

Inflation 💸

🎯 Learning Targets

• Explain how economists evaluate price changes over time
• Describe what causes inflation
• Identify the two main price indexes that economists use to measure inflation
• Explain how inflation affects the economy

⏰ What We Did

• Used instructional notes from Lesson 9, Part 4: Inflation, to calculate both inflation and the consumer price index

⚙️ Resources

• Measuring Inflation and the Consumer Price Index (A-16)

Economic Growth 💹

🎯 Learning Targets

• Explain why economic growth is important
• Identify the requirements for economic growth
• Describe the relationship between economic growth and productivity

⏰ What We Did

• Passed back and discussed "Solving Word Problems Involving Percentages" (A-12), "Calculating the Creation of Money" (A-13), and "Calculating Gross Domestic Product" (A-14)
• Used the instructional notes for Lesson 9, Part 3: Economic Growth, to answer the following questions in complete sentences:

1. Define labor productivity, productivity growth, capital-to-labor ratio, and capital deepening.
2. Describe the relationship between economic growth and a nation's standard of living.
3. What changes result in economic growth?
4. List and describe the three factors that lead to increased productivity.
5. Explain why it is important for the United States to be able to compete in the global economy.

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 9, Part 4: Inflation, before class tomorrow

Business Cycles 📉

🎯 Learning Targets

• Examine the four phases of the business cycle
• Identify the three leading indicators used to determine the current phase of the business cycle, and predict where the economy is headed

⏰ What We Did

• Examined and discussed a handout on the stages of the business cycle
• Used the instructional notes from Lesson 9, Part 2: Business Cycles, to interpret which phase of the business cycle is identified by the economic indicators
  

⚙️ Resources

• The Business Cycle and Economic Indicators (H-5)
• Interpreting Economic Indicators (A-15)

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 9, Part 3: Economic Growth, before class tomorrow

Gross Domestic Product 📊

🎯 Learning Targets

• Determine how governments calculate gross domestic product
• Explain some of the limitations of gross domestic product
• Identify other statistics economists use to measure the economy

⏰ What We Did

• Watched and took instructional notes on Lesson 9, Part 1: Gross Domestic Product
• Computed GDP from given C, I, G, X, and M data

⚙️ Resources

• Lesson 9 Instructional Notes
• Lesson 9, Part 1: Gross Domestic Product
• Calculating Gross Domestic Product (A-14)

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 9, Part 2: Business Cycles, before class tomorrow

Lesson 8 Lesson Review 8️⃣

🎯 Learning Targets

• Review the key concepts covered in Lesson 8 of Economics

⏰ What We Did

• Collected Lesson 7 Lesson Review
• Took a quiz on Lesson 8, Part 2: The Federal Reserve at Work
• Began working on Lesson 8 Lesson Review (Due F 23 May 2025)

⚙️ Resources

• Lesson 8 Lesson Review (LR-8)

Monetary Policy Strategies 💸

🎯 Learning Targets

• Explain why the Fed relies on either an easy-money policy or a tight-money policy
• Examine how the Fed makes monetary policy
• Identify the challenges associated with determining monetary policy

⏰ What We Did

• Experimented with the Fed's use of reserve requirements to implement easy- or tight-money policies through potential deposit expansion

⚙️ Resources

• Calculating the Creation of Money (A-13)

The Federal Reserve at Work 💵

Late Start Day 🕣

🎯 Learning Targets

• Identify services the Fed provides to banks
• Describe ways the Fed serves the federal government
• Explain how economists measure the U.S. money supply

⏰ What We Did

• Using the various functions of the Fed's implementation of monetary policy, solved word problems involving percentages

⚙️ Resources

• Solving Word Problems Involving Percentages (A-12)

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 8, Part 2: The Federal Reserve at Work, before class tomorrow

The Federal Reserve System 🏛

🎯 Learning Targets

• Describe how the Panic of 1907 affected U.S. banking
• Explain the purposes and characteristics of the Federal Reserve system
• Show the organization of the Fed

⏰ What We Did

• Collected binders for the third Binder Check of the semester
• Watched and took instructional notes on Lesson 8, Part 1: The Federal Reserve System
• Continued playing "Business Strategy," drawing connections of the Fed's role to aspects of the game

⚙️ Resources

• Lesson 8 Instructional Notes
• Lesson 8, Part 1: The Federal Reserve System
• Business Strategy Central

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 8, Part 2: The Federal Reserve at Work, before class tomorrow

Lesson 7 Lesson Review 7️⃣

🎯 Learning Targets

• Review the key concepts covered in Lesson 7 of Economics

⏰ What We Did

• Took a quiz on Lesson 7, Part 2: The U.S. Economy at Work
• Began working on Lesson 7 Lesson Review (Due T 13 May 2025)

⚙️ Resources

• Lesson 7 Lesson Review (LR-7)

U.S. Banking Today 🏧

🎯 Learning Targets

• Identify the most common types of U.S. financial institutions
• Explain how automation has affected banking practices
• Identify and describe the results of banking deregulation
• Explain the crises that financial institutions faced in the late 1980s

⏰ What We Did

• Assessed the completion of a running record in "Business Strategy" from hypothetical scenarios

💯 Assessment Make-ups

• Make-ups for the Unit 1 Content (Part I) and/or Skills (Part II) Assessments will take place by the end of TODAY during non-core (i.e., electives) classes

History of U.S. Banking 🏦

🎯 Learning Targets

• Describe the views of Federalists and Anti-Federalists about U.S. banking
• Explain how the development in the 1860s of nationally-chartered banks affected the power of state-chartered banks
• Describe how the government reformed and regulated the banking system after World War I

⏰ What We Did

• Used the instructional notes for Lesson 7, Part 4 to chronologically order the 10 events surrounding the history of banking within the United States

💯 Assessment Make-ups

• Make-ups for the Unit 1 Content (Part I) and/or Skills (Part II) Assessments will take place by FRIDAY during non-core (i.e., electives) classes

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 7, Part 5: U.S. Banking Today, before class tomorrow

Money 🍨

🎯 Learning Targets

• Explain the functions that money serves
• Describe the characteristics that an item must have to be used as money
• Identity the sources of money's value
• Identify and describe the types of money that are used in the United States

⏰ What We Did

• Illustrated the five characteristics of money by examining ice cream as a medium of exchange
• Enjoyed ice cream while determining whether salt, clam shells, cattle, silver, or brass coins would serve as suitable forms of money

⚙️ Resources

• Evaluating Mediums of Exchange (A-11)

💯 Assessment Make-ups

• Make-ups for the Unit 1 Content (Part I) and/or Skills (Part II) Assessments will take place after school TODAY OR this week during non-core (i.e., electives) classes by Friday

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 7, Part 4: History of U.S. Banking, before class tomorrow

The U.S. Economy at Work 💼

🎯 Learning Targets

• Describe how nations decide how to use scarce resources
• List and define the major goals of the U.S. economy
• Explain why economic goals sometimes conflict

⏰ What We Did

• Distributed and discussed the checklist for the third Economics Binder Check
• Continued playing "Business Strategy," highlighting aspects of the instructional video within the context of the game's classroom economy

⚙️ Resources

• Economics Binder Portal (T 13 May 2025)
• Business Strategy Central

💯 Assessment Make-ups

• Make-ups for the Unit 1 Content (Part I) and/or Skills (Part II) Assessments will take place after school on T 6 May and W 7 May OR this week during non-core (i.e., electives) classes

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 7, Part 3: Money, before class tomorrow

Features of the U.S. Economy 🇺🇸

🎯 Learning Targets

• Describe the main features of free enterprise in the United States
• Name the two markets of the circular flow model
• Explain how the circular flow model reflects exchange

⏰ What We Did

• Watched and took instructional notes on Lesson 7, Part 1: Features of the U.S. Economy
• Distributed and explored a handout on the circular flow model
• Continued playing "Business Strategy," highlighting aspects of the classroom economy from the instructional video
• Due to the high number of assessment make-ups — Used instructional notes from Lesson 7, Part 1 to answer the following questions in complete sentences:

1. Define free enterprise, private property, product market, and resource market.
2. What separates the U.S. economy from the pure market model? What features does the U.S. economy share with the pure market model?
3. How does the product market differ from the resource market in the circular flow model? Describe an exchange you have made recently, and identify its place in the circular flow model.
4. What types of exchanges are shown in the circular flow model?

⚙️ Resources

• Lesson 7 Instructional Notes
• Lesson 7, Part 1: Features of the U.S. Economy
• The Circular Flow of Goods and Services (H-4)
• Business Strategy Central

💯 Assessment Make-ups

• Make-ups for the Unit 1 Content (Part I) and/or Skills (Part II) Assessments will take place after school on T 6 May and W 7 May OR this week during non-core (i.e., electives) classes

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 7, Part 2: The U.S. Economy at Work, before class tomorrow

Unit 1 Skills Assessment 💯

🎯 Learning Targets

• Assess comprehension of Economics Unit 1: The Market Economy

⏰ What We Did

• Completed the skills portion of the Unit 1 Assessment, applying the skills obtained with assignments A-1 through A-10

Unit 1 Content Assessment 💯

🎯 Learning Targets

• Assess comprehension of Economics Unit 1: The Market Economy

⏰ What We Did

• Completed the content portion of the Unit 1 Assessment, utilizing the information presented in the instructional notes of Lessons 1 through 6

Unit 1 Question & Answer 🤯

🎯 Learning Targets

• Review economic concepts from Unit 1: The Market Economy

⏰ What We Did

• Student-led question and answer on Unit 1 Content

Unit 1 Review ⏪

🎯 Learning Targets

• Review economic concepts from Unit 1: The Market Economy

⏰ What We Did

• Individually reviewed for the Unit 1 Content assessment (Part I)

Unit 1 Review Game 🚨

🎯 Learning Targets

• Review economic concepts from Unit 1: The Market Economy

⏰ What We Did

• Played a review game from Lessons 1 through 6 to prepare for tomorrow's Unit 1 Content Assessment

Professional Development Day 🟢

Clintondale High School is closed today for students, while teachers are engaging in professional development. Classes will resume at 7:35 A.M. on Monday, April 28, 2025.
 

Lesson 6 Lesson Review 6️⃣

🎯 Learning Targets

• Review the key concepts covered in Lesson 6 of Economics

⏰ What We Did

• Took a quiz on Lesson 6, Part 1: Defining Fiscal Policy
• Began working on Lesson 6 Lesson Review (Due M 28 April 2025)

⚙️ Resources

• Lesson 6 Lesson Review (LR-6)

Assignment Passback and Review ❗️

⏰ What We Did

• Returned and discussed the answers to last week's "Computing Taxes" and "Working With Circle Graphs" in preparation for next week's Unit 1 Assessment

⚙️ Resources

• 2024 Instruction 1040 Tax Tables

Government and the Public 🗳

🎯 Learning Targets

• Explain how the government determines the public interest
• Identify the consequences that may result from government promotion of the public interest
• Describe how individuals and interest groups can affect government policies

⏰ What We Did

• Continue playing Business Strategy, with "the government" (i.e., Mr. Carpenter) determining the 'public interest' in making production regulations

⚙️ Resources

• Business Strategy Central

Business Strategy 💸

🎯 Learning Targets

• Describe and demonstrate how the economic forces of scarcity and opportunity costs impact individual, business, and household choices

⏰ What We Did

• Continue playing Business Strategy

⚙️ Resources

• Business Strategy Central

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 6, Part 4: Government and the Public, before class tomorrow

Good Friday — No School ✝️

Clintondale High School is closed for Good Friday. Classes will resume on Monday, April 21, 2025, at 7:35 A.M.

MME Testing — M-STEP 💯

The M-STEP portion of the MME was administered to 11th Graders this morning; the Juniors were excused at the end of today's testing session

Economic Goals 🥅

🎯 Learning Targets

• Explain why the government regulates business
• Describe how the government works to provide public goods
• Explain how the government promotes individuals' well-being
• Describe how the government works to stabilize the economy

⏰ What We Did

• Continue playing Business Strategy, with "the government" (i.e., Mr. Carpenter) ensuring economic goals within the market ecosystem of Room 204

⚙️ Resources

• Business Strategy Central

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 6, Part 4: Government and the Public, before class on Monday

Growth of Government 📊

🎯 Learning Targets

• Describe the factors that influence the growth of government
• Explain why government expenditures have increased over time
• Identify how federal, state, and local governments spend their money

⏰ What We Did

• Focusing on the increase in federal spending due to government growth discussed in Lesson 6, Part 2, examined a pie chart of federal expenditures for a given year

⚙️ Resources

• Working With Circle Graphs (A-10)

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 6, Part 3: Economic Goals, before class tomorrow

Defining Fiscal Policy 💰

🎯 Learning Targets

• Explain the roles that taxes play in fiscal policy
• Describe the kinds of tax rates that governments set
• Identify the most profitable taxes

⏰ What We Did

• Watched and took instructional notes on Lesson 6, Part 1: Defining Fiscal Policy
  
• Calculated taxes when provided tax rates in given scenarios

⚙️ Resources

• Lesson 6 Instructional Notes
• Lesson 6, Part 1: Defining Fiscal Policy
• Computing Taxes (A-9)

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 6, Part 2: Growth of Government, before class tomorrow

Business Strategy 💸

🎯 Learning Targets

• Engage in planned inquiries to describe and demonstrate how the economic forces of scarcity and opportunity costs impact individual and household choices

⏰ What We Did

• Continued playing "Business Strategy"

⚙️ Resources

• Business Strategy Central

MME Testing — ACT WorkKeys 💯

The ACT WorkKeys portion of the MME was administered to 11th Graders this morning; the Juniors were excused at the end of today's testing session

Business Strategy 💸

🎯 Learning Targets

• Engage in planned inquiries to describe and demonstrate how the economic forces of scarcity and opportunity costs impact individual and household choices

⏰ What We Did

• Continued playing "Business Strategy"

⚙️ Resources

• Business Strategy Central

MME Testing — SAT 💯

The SAT portion of the MME was administered to 11th Graders this morning; the Juniors were excused at the end of today's testing session

Binder Check #2 📚

⏰ What We Did

• Returned and discussed the answers to last week's "Understanding Market Equilibrium"
• Conducted the Q3 Economics binder check

Lesson 5 Lesson Review 5️⃣

🎯 Learning Targets

• Review the key concepts covered in Lesson 5 of Economics

⏰ What We Did

• Took a quiz on Lesson 5, Part 3: Managing Prices
• Began working on Lesson 5 Lesson Review (Due M 7 April 2025)

⚙️ Resources

• Lesson 5 Lesson Review (LR-4)

Managing Prices 💵

🎯 Learning Targets

• Explain why governments sometimes set prices
• Explain what governments try to accomplish through price floors, price ceilings, and rationing
• Explain what happens when governments manage prices

⏰ What We Did

• Continued playing "Business Strategy," incorporating content concepts into the game

⚙️ Resources

• Business Strategy Central

Determining Prices 🍻

🎯 Learning Targets

• Explain what market equilibrium is
• Explain how the price system handles product surpluses and shortages
• Explain how shifts in demand and supply affect market equilibrium

⏰ What We Did

• Using Prohibition of the 1920s and 1930s as a case study, examined the impact of the 18th Amendment on the supply and demand of both alcoholic beverages and grain

⚙️ Resources

• Understanding Market Equilibrium (A-8)

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 5, Part 3: Managing Prices, before class tomorrow

The Price System 🏷

🎯 Learning Targets

• Explain the role of the price system
• Describe the benefits of the price system
• Describe the limitations of the price system

⏰ What We Did

• Watched and took instructional notes on Lesson 5, Part 1: The Price System
  
• Continued playing "Business Strategy"

⚙️ Resources

• Lesson 5 Instructional Notes
• Lesson 5, Part 1: The Price System
• Business Strategy Central

💻 Homework

• Watch and take notes on Lesson 5, Part 2: Determining Prices, before class tomorrow