Should the escalating national debt be keeping you up at night with worry? Not necessarily, as explained by an entertaining video by Crash Course economics. Learn about the ways that a high GDP can contribute to the health of an economy more than a national debt can be detrimental.

Concepts

budget deficits, deficits, economics, the national debt, debt, gross domestic product, social security, healthcare

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Additional Tags

social studies

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Instructional Ideas

• Bring in articles about the United States national debt for learners to analyze and compare
• Encourage pupils to design their own countries, as modeled in the first few minutes of the video, and have them track their country's economic progress or struggles in a role-play activity

Classroom Considerations

• Consider pausing the video at key moments, such as the graphs, and discussing the data further
• The video was made in 2015, so the numbers reflect that year; the concepts are still applicable to any economic video

• This video is hosted on YouTube

Pros

• Clarifies the difference between deficits and debts
• Helpful animations and graphics reinforce complex concepts

Cons

• None

Common Core

RH.9-10.2 RH.9-10.4 RH.11-12.2 RH.11-12.4