Project Ideas for High School Economics

Teach your students about the stock market by letting them invest with fake money.

More and more high schools encourage students to study economics, and in Ohio, students must pass the course in order to graduate. Although required courses are often viewed as boring by teenagers, teachers can make the subjects more interesting and engaging. You can make your students active by working specific projects and activities that force them to learn how the different economic fundamentals, like supply and demand or investing, work.

The Haves and the Have-Nots

Teach your students the basic concepts of supply and demand by dividing the classroom into two groups. The students in the first group are the "haves," while the other students are the "have-nots." You may find it easiest to do this by creating a situation where something such as a natural disaster occurs. The students with everything are the ones unaffected by the shortage, while the others face numerous problems. Encourage the groups to determine the best way to proceed, depending on their group's situation. One group wants to make money off what they have, while the other group wants to get things at the best price. Keep the project going until the students reach a conclusion on their own.

Investing

Use the newspaper to keep track of current trends in the stock market as you teach students the process of buying and selling stocks. Divide the classroom into small groups and give each group a specific amount of fake money, such as $10,000. Ask the students to pick which stocks they'd buy with their money and then plot the rise and fall of the stocks over a given period of time, such as a month. During that time, the students can sell their stocks and buy new stocks, but they must keep track of all transactions. At the end of the session, determine which group made the most money by investing in the stock market.

Economics in Popular Media

Explore how economics works in terms of how companies advertise to different groups. Show commercials, magazine ads and clips from popular television shows and movies. Ask the students to identify the group each one markets to and how they know that from just a few minutes of exposure. Encourage the students to bring in their own clips and examples. If you have a larger class, assign small groups a specific type of person, such as those over the age of 60, young women, teen boys and parents of small children. Ask each group to find examples of companies marketing to that group.

References

• PBS Teachers: Social Studies
• Econo Class: Activities
• Academy Curricular Exchange: Social Studies High School (9-12)