Interdisciplinary Approaches to Consumer Culture

CONTENTS OF CURRICULUM UNIT 12.01.04

  1. Unit Guide
  1. Objective: Do you teach the same population I do?
  2. My students
  3. Rationale
  4. Teaching Impoverished Children
  5. Describing your consumer choice may change you as a consumer.
  6. Marketing Tricks
  7. Books that influenced this unit.
  8. The Big Idea
  9. Technology tools and classroom meetings
  10. Classroom Activities
  11. Appendix A: Implementing District Standards
  12. Annotated Teacher Bibliography
  13. Endnotes

Do We Really Need What We Want?: Consumerism and Second Graders

Mary Grace Flowers

Published September 2012

Tools for this Unit:

Guide Entry to 12.01.04

Children today are immersed in cultures of consumption such that every aspect of their lives is touched by a buy-and-consume modality. This unit will explore the concept of second graders learning that they possess and control purchasing power from both a marketing and parental level. My goal is also to instill in them the skills they need in order to become responsible consumers even if their buying power is restricted by their age or family income. My discussion will center around the importance of knowing your audience when teaching consumerism, tips to stop the siege of marketers preying on young children, tricks marketers use to sell, and the benefits of raising and teaching a savvy consumer.

(Developed for Social Studies, grade 2; recommended for Social Studies, grade 2)

Comments:

Cecil Johnson

September 1, 2020 at 12:47 pm

First Year Teaching Subject

I am a new teacher teaching Family and Consumer Science at the Middle School level. I am currently trying to take years of business experience and create an interesting teaching moment for my students. Consuerism is the topic that I think is improtant to get my students up and runnning for the semester.

Add a Comment

Characters Left: 500

Unit Survey
Feedback