The Business Cycle

Tuesday, May 2nd, 2023

Economics
The Business Cycle

Overview
Timeframe: 75 minutes
General Focus: We will review the different stages of the business cycle through a group project where students will analyze the U.S. business cycles throughout history by
collecting data, representing it on graphs, and discussing what may have impacted it.

Standards
9-12.E.3.1.5 Create and interpret graphs that model economic concepts.
9-12.E.3.1.7 Analyze the various parts of the business cycle and its effect on the economy.
9-12.E.3.3.3 Identify the role of the financial markets and institutions.

Objectives
Students will be able to (SWBAT):
Describe and analyze the different phases of the business cycle.
Identify the causes of change in the business cycle.
Explain how economists interpret business cycles and predict changes.
Analyze the major impacts on the of the business cycle in U.S. History.

Outcomes: What Measures the Objectives Have Been Met?

Students will demonstrate competency by:
Participating in the Business Cycle Warm-up Activity will show student competency in recognizing different characteristics of the different phases in the business cycle.
Completing 'U.S. Business Cycles Through the Years' assessment will demonstrate students ability to find and graph economic data, demonstrate competency in
analyzing and identifying the different phases of the business cycle, and understand major events in the U.S. that affected the business cycle.
See 'Deliverables' section for assignment and rubric

Prior Knowledge
Previous lesson on basics of the business cycle.
Previous lessons taught on how to measure the economy (i.e real GDP)
Students have some exposure and background knowledge of the Great Depression, the Great Recession, Covid-19 Pandemic, and other major economic events
through from other classes, their families, and other experiences.

Academic and Content Language

Reinforced vocabulary: GDP, unemployment, monetary policy, fiscal policy
I anticipate that some students may forget the difference between real and nominal GDP and question which one makes sense to use for tracking the business
cycle. I will make to be sure to address the difference between the two and explain why REAL GDP is the proper measurement.
go to quizlet class page if you need to review: https://quizlet.com/class/6190645/
New vocabulary: business cycle, peak, trough, expansion, contraction, recession
I anticipate that students will question the difference between contraction and recession. They are often used interchangeably when looking at some business cycle
models. I will be sure to explain the different and tell them how recessions are defined in the US (two consecutive quarters of negative growth).
I anticipate that some students may mix up characteristics between expansion/peak and between contraction/trough. I will address this by reiterating, expansion
and contract is when these characteristics are changing/influx and that the trough/peak are when they hit the highest/lowest.

Anticipated Areas of Misunderstanding

A common area of misunderstanding when discussing the business cycle is students assuming that it starts over/resets. I will make sure to address that it is an ongoing
process and is cyclical in nature. I will illustrate this while discussing it so students can see it expanding, contracting, expanding again, etc. This is also addressed in their
prework video and they will see it come into play during their group project.
Another common area of misunderstanding when learning about the business cycle is the simplicity of the model. Students may think that business cycles need to
perfectly mirror the model, or that they will always look the same (as in length and depth of the different stages on a graph). I will make sure to explain how they can vary
and try to teach more of the concepts and implications of it. This idea will also be visualized during their project of graphing the U.S. real GDP/business cycles.
Procedures
Pre-work:
Review of the Business Cycle (if needed, not required) https://vimeo.com/331315734
VideoAnt interactive annotations on "How to draw the business cycle" video. Instructions are in my first annotation on the video. https://ant.umn.edu/hfbwrrgbtg

Remember to think of the different stages of the business cycle, the causes of the business cycle, how it impacts consumers and producers, and what the government does to
"close the gap while watching the video(s).

Engage
Starter w/ Direct Instruction (15 minutes)
Business Cycle Activity (think-pair-share) format.
https://app.box.com/s/27wusj8ogdn1m409syptlcat675pughr (set of questions and answer key)
I will read out each statement and give students 1 minute to think and discuss with their partners to come up with what stage of the business cycle these
fall into. I will then ask for groups to share with the whole class. Depending on the answers received I will do a quick explanation/clarification to reinforce
ideas.
This will also be used as a formative assessment to see how well students understand the different phases of the business cycle
Experiential Learning (Cooperative) - 35 minutes
The class will be split up into 6 groups, groups will have 2-4 students depending on how many students are there, ideally 3. Students will be given a set of years to
research and analyze (ie 1930-1945, 1945-1960...). Groups will be heterogeneous, placing at least one student who is economically and mathematically strong in the
group so they can support the group in best practices during data collection and representation choices.
See "Deliverables" section for instructions and rubric.
Explore
Data collection:
Students will use online resources to collect the GDP of the U.S during their assigned years. I will leave instructions vague and act as a facilitator and push
students to think critically (ie collect data in years or quarter- to understand a recession, has to see two quarters in decline)
I will give students examples of resources to use, but want them to explore and find reliable online resources for data such as the federal reserve. I again
will act as a facilitator and help support them in finding reliable sources of data.
Data representation
Students will use visme technology to map their GDP data. Visme has many different formats and ways to represent data. I will leave instructions vague
and encourage them to think about the best way to represent their data.
Research
Once students have their data mapped and can visualize the business cycle(s) during their years they will research what was going on in those years that
could effect the business cycle and policies that were put into place.
Analyze
The group will choose 3 important events and/or policies that were influential in the business cycle(s) in their assigned years and label them in their
representations.
Presentation prep
Groups will come prepare a 2-3 minute presentation of their years to share with the whole class.
Explain: present to class- 23 minutes
Each group will present their graph and main points of their years to the class. I will ask students to note interesting aspects, or things they are curious about in
their notebooks so that they have it for the follow-up discussion next class period.
During the presentation I will guide students by asking questions or prompting them in ways that will encourage them to talk and think like economists (ie: is this a
expansionary or contractionary stage? is that a monetary or fiscal policy?)
Closure- 2 minutes
I will give students 2 sticky notes. On one they will write something they were surprised about or found interesting and on the other they will write something they
want to learn more about.
These will be incorporated in the follow up lesson where I will take a more direct instruction approach while teaching about business cycles within the U.S.
economy and major events and policies in more depth. These sticky notes will inform me on what students are interested in and curious about.

Extension
If you are finished early and wish to keep exploring this topic I want to you to put yourself in the place of a policy adviser and propose different policies to fill the gap in
either expansionary or contractionary stages in your set of years. Discuss the pros and cons of these policies.

Deliverables
Students will complete
Business Cycle Activity Starter
U.S. Business Cycles Through the Years Group Projects (1-2 slides using visme)
instructions/rubric: https://app.box.com/s/ifinoutn8nw5sulkl9loxljuasgyvz68
Closure sticky notes.

Modifications
All instruction and guidance will be written and verbal so students are able to refer back to them as many times as necessary.
The groups are designed in a heterogeneous way to support students who may usually need extra help can be assisted by other students along the way. Because this is
an experiential learning design I am going to keep the details vague so that students can work through problems and take an active role in their learning. I will not have
specific modifications ready for this assignment. Rather I will act as a facilitator and resource guide to support students.
 The multi-part assignment that involves researching, graphing, writing, and presenting will mean that there are multiple means of assessment. Having it be group-based
allows students to not only practice their collaboration skills, but also split up the work based on what they are interested in and most skilled at amongst their group,
while still participating in all the different elements.
I will allow students to take notes by hand or on a device during the presentation. All the slides made will be shared on canvas so that students will be able to review
them if needed.

Reflections
1. What went well? Why?
2. What did not go as you planned/expected? Why?
3. If you were to teach this lesson again to the same group of students, what changes would you make to your instructional strategies that would improve the student
learning? Why?
4. Did the students meet the objectives? How did you know?
5. How did you use feedback from the students to make instructional decisions while you were teaching the lesson?
6. How did the starter go? Did it seem as if the students retained enough information regarding the different stages of the business cycle from the prework videos? What
would make the prework better?
7. How well was the area of misunderstanding addressed? Were there any other areas of misunderstanding?
8. How did the students do in finding data for the graph and for the explanation? Did students need more or less support in knowing where to find good/reliable data?
9. Were there any struggles with understanding the new vocabulary? Was there vocabulary that came up throughout the lesson that would be helpful to add?
10. How did the grouping of students go? Would a different type of grouping technique work better?
11. How comfortable were students in giving presentations to the whole class? Is this a skill that needs to be worked on more?
12. Did any students participate in the extension activity? Is there anything that could improved on it?
13. Were all students needs met during instruction? Does there need to be more modifications added in future lessons?
14. How did the feedback you gave students help address their needs in relation to the objectives?
15. Analyze your biggest challenge during the lesson. What did you learn from it?
16. How will that impact future lessons?
17. Based on the results of the lesson, what are your next steps?

Materials
Course textbook:
Chapter 6: Economics Through Everyday Life: From China and Chili Dogs to Marx and Marijuana
by Anthony Clark PhD (Author)
ISBN: 9781623156688
Online Resources:
pre-work video(s)
https://vimeo.com/331315734
https://ant.umn.edu/hfbwrrgbtg

content creator software https://www.visme.co/templates/charts/gdp-growth-rate-comparison-area-chart-1425284168/

potential resources for students to gather data
https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/GDP https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.KD.ZG?locations=US https://www.thebalancemoney.com/us-gdp-by-
year-3305543
Physical materials
Business Cycle Activity Starter paper (enough for each set of pairs in the class)
White board and multicolored pens
2 different colored sticky notes for exit ticket