Project: participating in the economy

everyone you know is a participant in the economy. if they buy goods and services, then, they are consumers. when they supply goods and services, they are producers or entrepreneurs. if they supply labor, then they are part of the workforce. in this project, you will examine the roles played by each member of your group.

objectives

identify the economic roles played by each member of a group, including consumer, supplier of goods and services (producer or entrepreneur), and/or supplier of labor (worker).

materials:

for this project, you will need:

computer and/or paper and pencil

project

different economic roles exist in the economy. consider the economic roles that influence your life. create a group of individuals, including yourself, to complete this project.

record each group member's name and title (e. g., mom or dad) on a piece of paper. don't forget to include yourself.

for each person, consider the role that person plays in the economy. is the person a consumer, a supplier of goods and services (producer or entrepreneur), and/or a supplier of labor (worker)? members will play more than one economic role. for example, your parent may be both a supplier of labor and a consumer.

if a member is a consumer, answer the following questions to support your claim:

what types of goods and services does this member buy?

where are these goods and services being purchased? you can provide answers, such as stores or be more specific.

what do you think are the member's incentives for buying these products?

if a member is a supplier of goods and services, answer the following questions to support your claim:

what goods and services are being provided?

who is consuming the goods and services that your member supplies? for example, if your parent owns a pizza store, then food customers are consuming your parent's products.

what do you think are the member's incentives for supplying these products?

if a member is a supplier of labor, answer the following questions to support your claim:

what kind of labor, or work, is being supplied? in other words, what is the member's job?

what type of company or employer does the member work for?

what are the member's incentives for working?

note: if a group member plays more than one economic role, then you will have to answer the set of questions for each role. for example, if a member is both a worker and a consumer, then you will have to answer the set of worker questions found in #5 and the set of consumer questions found in #3.

6. now that you have completed your research, you will prepare to present this information to your classmates in the form of a narrative. to do this, you will want to remember the following about narratives:

narratives have a clear purpose. in this case, it will be to inform the audience of the economic roles of your groups.

narratives are not informative essays; your information will be presented as a story. consider how this information you have found can be framed with the same elements as a story. you will have a plot, the series of events that lead to a climax, and the end of the story, where your conflict is the most intense.

narratives use creative and descriptive language to give the reader a vivid image of the story.

once you have completed your writing, be sure to check it for spelling and grammatical errors.

7. now that your narrative is complete, you will want to practice it, to prepare for presenting it to your peers. you do not need to memorize your narrative, but you will want to be familiar enough with it so you do not sound as though you are reading it.

consider what words and sentences should be emphasized.

decide on your tone and the speed at which you will deliver your narrative and how this will change, depending on the story and what is happening.

your goal is to deliver your narrative in a meaningful and engaging way.

after you have delivered your narrative, submit it in the space below.

be sure to consult the following rubric to know what is expected of you on this assignment.