EGP 335

Lesson Plan
Lesson Title: Trading With the World
Day Number: 5
Author: __Natalie Rinaldi____________
Unit: __Working in Communities______________
Grade Level: 3rd
Background Information
In this lesson, the students are going to understand the concept of items around the world,
international trade, imports and exports. The students will discover where items that they use on
a daily basis come from, and how we get certain products. They will then learn about different
countries around the world and what they import and export.
Expected Duration 45 minutes
Concepts
o Products
o Exports
o Imports
o Trade
o Where Goods Come From

Vocabulary
o International trade
o Import
o Export
Skills
o Debating skills
o Listening
o Analyzing
o Speaking
o Investigating
o Discussing
o Evaluating
o Sharing

1.1 Integration of Learning Outcomes/Objectives

Students will be able to describe where goods come from
Students will demonstrate the idea of trade
Students will be able to explain importing and exporting
Students will be able to work cooperatively in groups
1.2 Standards PA Civics, History, Economics, Geography & NCSS Themes I-X

PA Standards
Geography
7.3.3.A: Identify the human characteristics of places and regions using the following criteria:
Population
Culture
Settlement
Economic activities
Political activities
Economics
6.4.3.B: Identify examples of trade, imports, and exports in the local community.
6.4.3.A: Identify local examples of specialization and division of labor.
NCSS
Global Connections:
D2.Eco.14.K-2. Describe why people in one country trade goods and services with people in
other countries.
D2.Eco.15.K-2. Describe products that are produced abroad and sold domestically and products
and products that are produced domestically and sold abroad.
D2.Eco.14.3-5. Explain how trade leads to increasing economic interdependence on different
groups within participating nations.
D2.Eco.15.3-5. Explain the effects of increasing economic interdependence on different groups
within participating nations.
1.3 Anticipatory Set
To start the activity, the teacher is will say Boys and girls, to start todays lesson, I want each of
you to look at the tags on your shirts, shoes, sweatshirts, backpacks, pants, and anything else you
may have. Each tag should say the product was made in different countries, such as Made In
China, or Made in U.S.A, or other countries. The class would then discuss and make a list of all
of the different countries that their items came from. I would then tell them that this would lead
into our topic of the day, Trading with the World.
1.4 Procedures
1. First, the teacher is going to ask the class if they know what the words Import, Export, and
International Trade.
a. If the class does not know, or a student volunteers the answers, these are the
definitions:
i. Import: a good brought into one country from another country
ii. Export: a good shipped from one country to another
iii. International Trade: the buying and selling of goods between countries
b. These vocabulary words will be what the lesson is based off of.
2. The first part of the lesson would be a follow-up/continuation of the anticipatory set. The
students would then be broken up into small groups of about 5 students and combine and discuss

the data that they found on the tags of their belongings. This means that the students would use
the list that they wrote down and record which countries were seen the most in manufacturing
products. The students would then make a graph.
3. The students in those same groups would then represent different countries, to represent
different parts of the world;
a. United States of America, Chile, South Africa, Italy, and China. Each country has
different goods that they export. The students will then have to research what their
country imports and exports. The students then will work with other countries.
i. For example: The United States of America exports
a. Wheat
b. Corn
c. Steel
d. Electronics
e. Cars
b. The students would then create a value for the items that they export, but as points. For
example, Steel could be 5 points, because that is something that has greater value.
c. The students would then discuss what items they believe their country needs.
d. They would then come up with a list of items that are more desirable that they need
and that they export (being worth more and more points) and items that are not as needed.
4. The teacher will then explain that they are going to make trades with other countries. This is
how the vocabulary words apply. International Trade applies because the students are trading
with other countries, making it international. The goods that their own country has are called
exports because they give them to other countries through different types of transportation
(boats, planes, etc). The products that they are receiving are called imports.
5. The students will learn that the point of the game is to get the most points. Each team will
make their own cards as representation of the items so that they can export them to other
countries. When they export an item, they gain points, and when they import an item they lose
points because they are spending them.
a. The students can come up with ways to advertise their products and make them more
desirable so that they are able to trade more and earn more points.
6. In the middle of the game, the teacher will announce that there is a shortage on a certain item
in the world and the points for that item will increase because it is becoming rarer. This gives the
students the idea of how products we import and export are rare and what we need to do to get
those products.
1.5 Differentiation
For Gifted Students: For students who this activity may be too easy for, the students
could then have to get a certain amount of points (exempt from the point of having the

most amount of points at the end). The students would then explain what the items that
they imported and exported are used for and why they are crucial to have in countries.
For ELL Students: For students who are struggling to learn English, they could trade
items that are familiar to them that come from their country. For example, if the student is
from South America, they could trade items such as coffee, citrus fruit, and beef, so that
they are more comfortable with the situations.
1.6 Closure
Once the students are finished with their trading, the students will all gather in a circle on
the rug and discuss what they discovered. They will write down the items from their continent
and the items that they traded from other continents. They will talk about which items they found
more valuable. The students will then talk about what they thought of the game and the products
they use every day that they did not know were imported from somewhere else.
1.7 Formative/Summative Assessment of Students (P-12)
Formative assessment will occur throughout the lesson through teacher observation. The teacher
will observe how the students interact in their country group and within the other countries to
form trades.
Summative assessment: As an exit ticket, the teacher will have the student write down what they
learned in class today and to summarize their experience. They will then discuss what products
they think are more valuable based on the points of the items and which are major items that they
cannot live without.
1.8 Materials/Equipment/Resources
A. STUDENT MATERIALS/ READING RESOURCES:
http://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/center/students/trade/tradehub.aspx?
ng=true&u=B0B1C7AD&av=4&gec=6
(this game is similar to the game that is going to be played in class. This way if students
enjoyed the game, they can play it at home as well.)
B. TEACHER MATERIALS/RESOURCES FOR LESSON DESIGN: List resources you used to
design the lesson plan (teacher materials, to provide background on the content, etc...)
o http://education.nationalgeographic.com/activity/the-trading-game/
o https://www.pinterest.com/4better/trade-barter-currency/
o http://www.econedlink.org/lessons/index.php?lid=855&type=educator
1.9 Technology
The students will use the cards they create for trading
The website that the students are given if they would like to continue to play this game
independently or at home.
2.1 Reflection on Planning

I thought that starting off the lesson with asking the students where their items came from would
be an interesting anticipatory set that the students would have fun with. I have done this lesson in
school and I thought that it was an interesting way to incorporate the idea of international trade
and importing and exporting. I wanted them to have fun with this assignment as well, so I
wanted them to play a game that would help them to get a better idea of international trade,
imports and exports. I wanted them to come up with items that they believed were more valuable
as well. They would also come up with items that are more expensive once they become more
scarce and rare to understand supply and demand, which they will learn more about in other
lessons, but I thought it would be interesting to touch upon.

o
o

2.2 Content Outline

Lesson 3: Trading with the World
Lesson 3 Vocabulary
International Trade: the buying and selling of goods between countries
Import: a good brought into one country from another country
Import/export maps in textbook
Find and discuss additional maps (i.e. perhaps one that pertains to
Pennsylvania)
Have students determine where some of the products they use in their daily
lives come from
Perhaps make it a whole-group activity (i.e. create a bar graph [math] and
map detailing the places that students most frequently found that their
products came from).
Export: a good shipped from one country to another
Import/export maps in textbook
Find and discuss additional maps (i.e. perhaps one that pertains to
Pennsylvania)