The Undercover Economist: Student Lessons Project 
           
          You have read The Undercover Economist by Tim Harford.  The class will be divided into groups of 4-5 students, 
          and each group will be assigned 1-2 chapters.  Your task will be to teach your assigned chapters on a specific 
          day to the class.   
           
                     Each lesson should contain discussion and an activity.   
                             Within the discussion or activity, be sure to touch upon an economic issue related to the 
                              chapters covered.  Think creatively.   Do not allow the economic issue to dominate the lesson.  
                              Avoid giving a synopsis of the chapter(s) assigned; remember that your classmates have already 
                              read the book. 
                             You must consider how you will evaluate your students.  How will you know that your students are 
                              learning? How will you check to make sure that they understand what you are teaching? Will 
                              you collect a small piece of writing, take notes on student responses, etc.? 
           
           
          Aim:                You must develop a central question that will be the focus of your lesson.  Students should be 
           
          able to answer this question by the end of your class. 
           
           
           
          Do Now:             Develop a task to begin the lesson.  How will you hook students into your topic? 
           
           
           
          Discussion:         Develop questions that cover a wide variety of approaches to the book.  Some questions can 
           
          deal with content, and others should deal with the opinions in the book.  Ultimately, your discussion must 
           
          challenge students to think critically and analytically and to make claims based on evidence, not simply 
           
          identify or list facts and information in the book.  You may use open-ended questions and/or prompt students 
           
          to “say more about that”or “elaborate” to encourage deeper  thought.  Lesson plan ideas can be found by 
           
          Googling the words lesson plan + … (any topic).  
           
           
           
          Activity:           Develop an activity related to the book that engages the class in creative thought.  Consider 
           
          the types of activities you like, as well as the types of activities your English teacher might use.  You have the 
           
          option of putting the class into groups or partners.  Activities should be challenging and creative.  Some you 
           
          may wish to consider are: 
                   Writing an advice column 
                   Creating a monologue based on the book 
                   Asking students to engage in structured debate 
                   Forming a mini seminar 
                   Reading and critiquing a passage together 
                   Having students pose as economists with certain perspectives to offer commentary 
                   Write from perspective of an economic advisor or world leader 
                   Analyzing a reading 
                   Engaging in analytical writing 
                   Designing a lab 
           
           
           
          ***NOTE:  NO GAMES of any sort will be accepted in a lesson. 
           
           
           
          Summary:            How will you end the lesson? How will you know that students achieved your Aim? 
           
           
          Type and staple your lesson plan and submit it to the teacher at the start of the class.  Failure to do this will 
          negatively impact your grade.  Include each student’s name and describe what each student contributed to 
          the lesson. The lesson should last 40 minutes.  Stay aware of the time as you present to insure you close before 
          the bell rings. The students not presenting must be fully engaged with the lesson.  Student engagement is the 
          responsibility of the students who are presenting as well as the students in the audience.  Lack of student 
          participation/ engagement will affect the grade of his/her presentation; students are expected to be 
          respectful, take notes, and participate.  All students MUST BRING THEIR BOOKS to class each day.  Failure to do 
          so will impact your class participation grade. Be sure to speak loudly and clearly throughout the lesson.   
          This is a group effort where all members must participate on an equal and fair basis.  No one person is to 
          assume the bulk of the work. 
           
    FORMAT FOR TYPED LESSON PLAN 
     
    Names of Group Members with contributions clearly stated 
     
     
     
     
    Date of Presentation 
    Period 
     
     
    Topic:  Chapter(s) Covered 
    Aim:  What do you want students to know at the end of your lesson?  (Use words such as “Students will be able 
    to explain, describe, interpret, list, identify, etc.) 
     
     
     
    Materials:  What materials – if any - will you use in the lesson?  PPT, handout, transparency, film clip, etc. 
     
     
     
    Objectives:  What do you want the students to know at the end of the lesson?  (2-3 objectives; “Students will be 
    able to…”) 
     
     
     
    Procedure:  How will you teach the class?  (identify and describe the parts of your lesson, including what you, 
    the instructor, will be doing throughout the lesson to gauge student understanding and evaluate student 
    learning) 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Activity:  Describe your activity and how it will enhance the students’ understanding and appreciation for the 
    chapters assigned.  Group work?  Role play?  Journal writing?  Etc.   Go where you want with this. 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Summary:  How will you close the class? 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
        PROJECT RUBRIC 
         
                             100 – 91            90 – 81             80 – 71             70 - 61              59 and below 
        Lesson Plan          Well-organized;     Organized;          Somewhat            Poorly               Not organized; 
                             copy given to       copy given to       organized; copy  organized; copy  copy not given 
                             teacher at start    teacher at start    given to            not given to         to teacher at 
                             of class.           of class.           teacher at start    teacher at start     start of class.  
                             Objectives          Objectives          of class.           of class.            No objectives. 
                             clearly stated.     stated.             Objectives          Objectives 
                                                                     unclear.            missing or 
                                                                                         unclear. 
        Lesson               Lesson              Lesson well         Lesson              Lesson               Weak lesson 
        Implementation       extremely well      presented; kept     presented with      presentation         presentation; 
                             presented; kept     class engaged       both strong and     uneven; class        class not fully 
                             class fully         throughout          weak elements;      not fully            engaged.  Poor 
                             engaged             period.  Good       kept class mostly  engaged.  Poor        timing. 
                             throughout          timing.             engaged             timing. 
                             period.                                 throughout 
                             Excellent timing.                       period.  Fair 
                                                                     timing. 
        Activity             Activity was        Activity was        Activity was        Poorly               Poorly 
                             creative,           creative and        relevant, but       constructed          constructed 
                             engaging, and       relevant to         failed to           activity.            activity or no 
                             relevant to         assigned            engage class                             activity at all. 
                             chapters            chapters.           fully. 
                             assigned. 
        Economic issue       Issue taught        Issue taught was  Issue lacked          Issue omitted or     Issue omitted 
                             relevant,           mostly relevant,    clarity,            poorly               and poorly 
                             accurate, and       accurate, and       relevancy, or       communicated.  communicated. 
                             clear to class.     clear to class.     accuracy. 
        Presentation         Very well-          Well-organized      Mostly              Not well-            Poorly 
                             organized with      with each           organized.          organized.           organized.  
                             each student        student             Speakers not        Speakers             Speakers 
                             speaking loudly     speaking loudly     always loud or      confusing or         confusing or 
                             and clearly.        and clearly.        clear enough.       difficult to hear.   difficult to hear.  
                             Excellent class     Good class          Good class          Poor class           Poor class 
                             materials.          materials.          materials.          materials.           materials.