Economic Systems

Unit description: In this unit, students will examine the idea that people have economic needs and wants. Students will identify basic human needs, and distinguish between a need and want. Students will learn about goods and services in an economy and how they impact the needs and wants of the people in a community. In addition, students will learn about scarcity and of goods and services and be given the opportunity to identify examples of this. 

Standards 

Standard 4- Economics

Standard 5- Civics, Citizenship and Gov’t

Essential Questions and Big Ideas

Big Idea: Economic systems help satisfy people’s economic wants and needs.

What is the difference between a want and a need?

• A need is something that you must have to survive.
• A want is something that you would like but that you do not need to survive.

What are goods and services and how do they help satisfy people’s wants and needs? 

• Goods are things that people buy.
• Services are when people pay other people to do work.

What is scarcity and how does it affect people’s wants and needs? 

• When there is not a lot of something, it is called scarce.
• When goods and services are scarce, there are less to fulfill people’s wants and needs.

Download the complete Kindergarten Social Studies Unit 5 framework to customize for your own planning.

Geography, Humans, and the Environment

Unit description: Maps and globes are representations of Earth’s surface that are used to locate and better understand places and regions. In this unit, students will gain an understanding of this and learn to locate places and regions on a map. Students will also learn to locate physical features and man-made structures on a map (e.g., school, grocery store, train station, hospital), using geographic vocabulary. In addition, students will learn about climate and seasonal weather changes and how people and communities are affected by these changes.

Download the complete Kindergarten Social Studies Unit 3 framework to customize for your own planning.

Standards 

• Standard 3- Geography
• Standard 5- Civics, Citizenship and Gov’t

Essential Questions and Big Ideas

Big Idea of the Unit: Understanding our physical environment helps us understand how people live. 

• How do maps and globes help us better understand places?
  • People use maps and gloves to understand where things are in relation to one another.
• How do we locate places, physical features, and man-made structures on a map or globe?
  •  Map keys, cardinal directions and titles help us to read maps.
• How do climate, seasonal weather changes, and the physical features associated with the community and region all affect how people live?
  • Climate, seasonal weather changes, and the physical features impact jobs, resources and patterns to peoples daily lives.

Prerequisite Skills

In kindergarten, students study “Self and Others.” The course is organized into five units of study—Individual Development and Cultural Identity; Civic Ideals and Practices; Geography, Humans, and the Environment; Time, Continuity, and Change; and Economic Systems. These units represent five of the unifying themes of social studies, and may be presented in any order.

Civic Ideals and Practices

Unit description: Students will learn about rights and responsibilities at home, at school, in the classroom, and in the community, both their own and those of their adult counterparts. Students will learn about the basic universal rights and protections they have. They will have the opportunity to learn about rules within these same environments, what would happen if rules were not followed, and how to ensure health and safety for all. Students will be given the opportunity to contribute to the development of rules or laws as needed for class activities.

Standards Addressed in this Unit

• Standard 5 – Civics, Citizenship and Gov’t

Essential Questions and Big Ideas

• BI: Governments create rules and laws in order to protect and respect citizens and communities
• What are basic universal rights?
  • Universal rights are the things that all people in the world should have, like food, a home, being safe and having an education
• What responsibilities do we have at home, school, in the classroom and community?
  • Children and adults both help to keep homes, classrooms, schools and community safe, clean and welcoming for all people.
• How can we be responsible members of the classroom?
  • Students can help keep classrooms clean, safe and welcoming by following rules and routines.
• What classroom routines do we have to ensure health and safety for all?
  • Routines for handwashing, keeping personal spaces clean and tidy and moving slowly in crowded spaces help to keep classrooms safe and healthy.

Prerequisite Skills

In kindergarten, students study “Self and Others.” The course is organized into five units of study — Individual Development and Cultural Identity; Civic Ideals and Practices; Geography, Humans, and the Environment; Time, Continuity, and Change; and Economic Systems. These units represent five of the unifying themes of social studies, and may be presented in any order.

Download the complete Kindergarten Social Studies – Civic Ideals and Practices framework to customize for your own planning.

Students will learn about similarities and differences between children, families, and communities and about holidays, symbols and traditions that unite us as Americans. Students learn about respect for others, and rights and responsibilities of individuals.

Note: Lessons will vary in length, depending on the amount of time you have with students, the resources that you choose to accompany the unit, the level of rigor within each learning target, and any other factors that may contribute to the pacing of your learning progressions. It is recommended that you adjust the pace and length of each learning progression(s) accordingly in response to these factors.

Download the complete Kindergarten Social Studies – Individual Development and Cultural Identity framework to customize for your own planning.

Standards

• Standard 1: U.S. & N.Y. History
• Standard 3: Geography
• Standard 5: Civics, Citizenship and Gov’t

Essential Questions and Big Ideas of the Unit

Big Idea of the Unit: Learning about ourselves helps us learn more about our others and our country.

• How do I relate to my family, people in my community, and people in other cultures?
  • People from different families, communities and other cultures have similar and different characteristics and traits.
• What character traits do I share with people around the world?
  • All humans are born into families, communicate with other, make relationships with others and live by rules and values that are important to them.
• Why do we celebrate specific holidays in our country?
  • American celebrate days that are important in our history, these days are call National Holidays.
• How do these holidays relate to the culture of our country?
  • National Holidays honor what is important to the citizens of a nation.

Download the complete Kindergarten Social Studies – Individual Development and Cultural Identity framework to customize for your own planning.