Council for Economic Education
The Role of Government: The Federal Government and Fiscal Policy
Give learners a crash course in balancing the books on the United States federal government level with an economics and government resource. Class members engage in a warm-up discussion and brainstorming session before answering...
Federal Reserve Bank
Income Taxes
Most adults dread April 15 — tax day! Tax preparation can be intimidating even for adults. Build confidence by leading individuals through the process and then give them a scenario to practice. The exercise uses tax vocabulary to give...
Federal Reserve Bank
Government Spending and Taxes
What types of government programs are designed to improve economic inequity in the United States? Introduce your learners to government programs, such as low-income housing, Social Security, and Medicaid, how they work to improve...
Federal Reserve Bank
Monetary and Fiscal Policy in Times of Crisis
Following the 2008 financial crisis in the United States, why did fiscal policymakers increase government spending and reduce taxes? Discover the motivation behind these actions and learn about the separate functions of monetary and...
Council for Economic Education
Federal Budget Lesson Plan and Fiscal Ship Student Game
The federal budget has never been so fun! Using an interactive game, high schoolers choose from a variety of policy options after identifying goals and try to balance these changes in policy with a federal budget.
Student Handouts
Budgets and Deficits
There's a lot to learn about the savings and loan crisis. Start off your learners with a quick reading assignment. Pupils read the brief informational article and respond to three questions about the savings and loan crisis, thrifts, and...
Curated OER
Government Spending - Earmarks
In this government spending - earmarks worksheet, students research this topic (there are many links listed), examine the issue, write a letter to their congressional representative or a local newspaper, make a video or analyze...
Federal Reserve Bank
Choices Are Everywhere: Why Can’t We Just Have It All?
Here is a resource covering a range of terms and concepts regarding scarcity, opportunity cost, and government debt in economics.
Council for Economic Education
Government Spending: Why Do We Spend the Way We Do?
Students examine the categories for federal spending using the internet to locate them. They create a list of expenditures noting them as government purchases or transfer payments. They analyze the patterns of spending during the past 40...
School Improvement in Maryland
Monetary Policy
As an introduction to monetary policy, groups investigate and evaluate the effectiveness of current monetary and fiscal policies on promoting full employment, price stability, and economic performance. They then apply monetary tools...
Curated OER
Reaganomics: A fix to the unemployment and inflation of the time
The 1980's was an interesting time for the American economic system. This presentation relates the lead to and the effects of Reaganomics, Trickle down economy, and Clintonomics. Embedded links, works cited, and images are included. A...
Curated OER
Should America Balance the Federal Budget?
Students analyze the federal budget of the United States. In this national debt instructional activity, students listen to their instructor present a lecture regarding the details of the balancing the federal budget. Students respond to...
Curated OER
Debt and Deficits
Students identify, research and interpret the national debt and deficits of the past through today and why it has risen significantly in the last 20 years. They analyze the size and impacts and discuss the various policy measures for...
Heritage Foundation
Congress's Economic Powers
Join Congress as they assess their economic abilities for spending—and as they discover their limits. High schoolers use an educational resource to explore Congress's economic powers and learn to apply these concepts to their everyday...
Curated OER
Dual Federalism
Students compare and contrast the roles of federal and state governments in the United States. In this government lesson plan, students research state and national governments' joint and individual powers prior to debating a topic...
Curated OER
Citizenship Worksheet 5 - Local and State Government
The Tenth Amendment of the United States Constitution delegates rights that have not been defined by the federal government to the states. But what are the responsibilities of state governments? What about county and city governments?...
ProCon
Obamacare
Former President Barack Obama reformed the United States' health care system with Obamacare, but is the new legislation good for America? Scholars read a historical timeline about the passage of health care reform laws and compare United...
College Board
2006 AP® Macroeconomics Free-Response Questions Form B
How does employment affect supply and demand? It may seem like a simple question, but an authentic prompt from College Board helps learners unpack various scenarios. Additional queries explore exchange rates and the effects of monetary...
Curated OER
The Tax Man Cometh
Students examine websites and resources related to Bush's 2001 tax plan. They discuss the history of taxes and other tax topics. They look for evidence in the local newspaper of government spending at work.
University of Missouri
Money Math
Young mathematicians put their skills to the test in the real world during this four-lesson consumer math unit. Whether they are learning how compound interest can make them millionaires, calculating the cost of remodeling...
Curated OER
Money, Money, Honey Bunny!
Students determine the differences between goods and services, and saving and spending. In this economics lesson, students listen to a rhyming story about a bunny with money. They play a matching game with the associated cards and work...
PBS
Where Does Your Paycheck Go?
Upper elementary learners explore the concept of taxes taken out of an employee's paycheck. As they work through this lesson, young mathematicians discover the difference between gross pay and net pay. They also see what types...
Curated OER
The Trial of Monty Terry
Students research and analyze the Federal Reserve System. They participate in a reader's theater, acting out the roles typical of a courtroom drama as they determine whether the defendant, Monty Terry, is guilty or innocent of...
Curated OER
Your First Job
Students determine that they are responsible for paying income taxes through withholdings on earned income. They examine the Form W-4.