Indiana Social Studies K.E.1

Social StudiesKindergartenEconomics

The Standard

Explain that people work to earn money to buy the things they want and need.

2026 Indiana Academic Standards: K-12 Social Studies

Teacher's field guide

What Students Need to Do: Students name jobs people do to earn money. They explain that people use that money to buy things they need, like food, and things they want, like toys.
What Mastery Looks Like: A student can name a job, say that the worker gets paid, and give an example of something the pay could buy. They can tell why bread is a need and a toy is a want.
Common Misconceptions: Some children think workers take money directly from a store's cash register. Others call a toy a need because they want it badly.
How to Assess It: Show pictures of a bus driver, bread, and a toy. Ask, “How does the driver get money? What could they buy? Which item is a need?”

Lesson moves

Set up a pretend store; children stock shelves to earn play coins, then use the coins to buy a pictured item.
Ask partners, “Why does a bus driver go to work, and what could their pay buy?”
Give pairs job, pay, and item cards; have them put the cards in order and label the item a want or need.
Show a grocery receipt with bread and cookies circled; ask which purchase meets a need and which is a want.

Free download

A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to K.E.1, with an answer key for the teacher on its own page. No account needed.

PDF, US Letter, prints cleanly in black and white.

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