The Big Idea
Every individual has a different idea about what separates a "need" from a "want," depending on his or her cultural and economic situation. Although every person has different ideas about what is necessary for him or her, there are certain basic needs that all humans share, including biological needs (food, water, air, shelter); social needs (clothing, feelings of belonging and protection); and spiritual needs (faith, love, hope).
This unit correlates with Delaware Prioritized Standard Two, which states that students will understand how barter, money, and other media are employed to facilitate the exchange of resources, goods, and services. This unit also targets lesson six of our current social studies series published by Harcourt Brace and entitled "About My Community." The content that is covered within lesson six includes the current economic teaching strand that defines "wants" in term of trade-offs and scarcity and not in contrast to "basic needs." In this series, there are only two pages dedicated to this subject matter of wants and needs. In summary, because of the age appropriateness of both content base of the topic and age of my students, Harcourt focuses on students knowing that a need is something you cannot live without and a want is something you would like to have, but not necessary for survival. My unit encompasses the outline of our curriculum unit, but the activities that I have created allows for a more in depth analysis of the topics.
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