Lesson Plan

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Lesson Plan
Grade: Date: 17/01/2026
Subject: Economics
Lesson Topic: Examples of the basic economic problem in the context of governments
Learning Objective/s:
  • Describe the basic economic problem of scarcity, choice, and opportunity cost.
  • Explain how governments encounter the basic economic problem through budget and resource allocation.
  • Analyse real‑world government decisions to identify opportunity costs.
  • Apply the concept of trade‑offs to evaluate alternative public policy options.
Materials Needed:
  • Projector or interactive whiteboard
  • Slide deck with examples and comparative table
  • Handout containing the PPF diagram and case‑study prompts
  • Whiteboard markers and chart paper
  • Exit ticket cards
 Introduction:
Begin with a quick poll: “If you had $10, would you spend it on a movie or a new video game?” This hooks students on trade‑offs and links to prior knowledge of personal budgeting. Explain that governments face similar choices but on a much larger scale, and outline that today they will identify opportunity costs in public decisions. Success will be measured by students’ ability to articulate the trade‑offs in given scenarios.
Lesson Structure:
  1. Do‑Now (5’) – Students write a recent personal choice and the alternative they gave up; share briefly to introduce opportunity cost.
  2. Mini‑lecture (10’) – Review scarcity, choice, opportunity cost, and introduce the basic economic problem in government contexts using slides.
  3. Group analysis (15’) – Small groups examine one of the five government examples; complete a worksheet identifying the scarce resource, the choice, and the opportunity cost.
  4. Comparative table discussion (10’) – Whole‑class compare findings using the provided comparative table; discuss differences across national, regional, and local levels.
  5. PPF activity (10’) – Students draw a simple production possibility frontier for a government choosing between health and education, label the curve, and explain the trade‑off.
  6. Check for understanding (5’) – Quick quiz (Kahoot or exit ticket) with three scenario questions.
Conclusion:
Summarise that scarcity forces governments to make choices, each creating an opportunity cost, as illustrated by the examples and PPF. Ask students to write one key takeaway on an exit ticket. For homework, assign a brief essay comparing two government trade‑offs discussed today.