Lesson 1: What are needs and wants?
Lesson Focus: What are needs and wants? How do I decide between my needs and wants?
Grade: Kindergarten
Time Suggested: 30-40 min.
Materials needed
/uploads/2/8/9/0/28901645/the_bag_im_taking_to_grandmas_suitcase_worksheet.docx
Standards: NYS Social Studies for Kindergarten
Objectives
Important Vocabulary
Opening Activities
Main Learning Activities
Closure
After finishing “packing,” students will gather on the rug and briefly discuss what they packed and how they made their choices. Was it hard to choose? Why did they choose to pack certain things? Why did they choose to leave certain things at home?
Assessment & Record Keeping
Post-Lesson Follow-ups
Grade: Kindergarten
Time Suggested: 30-40 min.
Materials needed
- Place to write (blackboard, whiteboard, large paper, etc.)
- A real bag to pack
- Clothes, toiletry items, toys, books, movies as props for packing the real bag
- The Bag I’m Taking to Grandma’s by Shirley Neitse
- Worksheets for The Bag I’m Taking to Grandma’s (enough for all students)
/uploads/2/8/9/0/28901645/the_bag_im_taking_to_grandmas_suitcase_worksheet.docx
- Scissors (enough for all students)
- Glue sticks or liquid glue/paint brushes or popsicle sticks (enough for all students)
Standards: NYS Social Studies for Kindergarten
- Concepts/Themes – Needs and Wants
- Content Understandings – Basic human needs and wants: People define basic human needs and wants.
Objectives
- Students will understand the difference between a need and a want.
- Students will identify what basic needs are.
- Students will give examples of what wants are.
- Students will discuss what a choice is.
- Students will make choices between the things they want and need.
Important Vocabulary
- Need
- Want
- Choice
Opening Activities
- Students will be asked to identify the things they need to have to live. Responses will be written on the board (regardless of it they are a need or want – afterwards, we will make the distinction -- Possible student responses: Food, water, place to live, clothes, toys, video games, etc.).
- Discuss the difference between needing food because you’re hungry and wanting a new toy because it’s cool or looks like fun.
- As a class, sort through the different ideas that were suggested and determine if they are needs or wants.
Main Learning Activities
- Introduce The Bag I’m Taking to Grandma’s by asking students if they have ever gone anywhere that they have had to bring an overnight bag. Did they pack it themselves? What did they include?
- Read The Bag I’m Taking to Grandma’s. Discuss how the boy had to make choices about what to bring because he couldn’t bring everything to his Grandma’s house because he only had a certain amount of space in his bag.
- As a class, students will make choices with real items (clothes, toys, toiletries, etc.) and choose what would go in the real bag to “go to Grandma’s.”
- Students will have worksheets that have 6 spaces for things to pack in their “bag.” Attached will be objects that they can choose from – students will be reminded to choose the things they need first (clothes, toothbrush and toothpaste, hair brush, shoes) before choosing the things they want to bring (toy, book, etc.).
Closure
After finishing “packing,” students will gather on the rug and briefly discuss what they packed and how they made their choices. Was it hard to choose? Why did they choose to pack certain things? Why did they choose to leave certain things at home?
Assessment & Record Keeping
- “Packing” worksheet – Students will be assessed by how they differentiate their wants and needs as they “pack their bag” to go to Grandma’s.
- Anecdotal observations from class discussion and watching as the students make their packing choices – the teacher will circulate the classroom as students are working on their packing worksheets and ask them questions such as “Why did you choose to pack that?” and “Why didn't you pack that?”
- The teacher will know that the learning objectives have been met if the students can identify clothes and toiletries as needs for a trip and other things (such as entertainment – books, movies, toys) as a want.
Post-Lesson Follow-ups
- What went well? How do I know?
- What needs more work in the next class/ lesson?
- What activities should I do differently next time?
- The bag and props can be brought to the dramatic play area for students to use throughout the unit