Choices and Changes

Lessons:

1. Scarcity2. Alternatives3. Alternatives Have Advantages &

Disadvantages4. Choice5. Opportunity Cost

Lesson 6

Decision MakingFive Steps

The Five Steps

1. State the goal and identify the resources

2. List alternative uses of the resources

3. Identify the advantages and disadvantages of each alternative

4. Identify the choice and the opportunity cost

5. Re-evaluate

Vocabulary

• Decision making – the process of identifying a choice

• Goal – something that a person wants to have or do

• Re-evaluate – think again about a decision made previously

Your grandparents send you $20 for your birthday. What will you do with it?

• Resource:$20.00• Goal:Maximum Satisfaction, Enjoyment, Pleasure

• Alternative 1:• Alternative 2:• Advantages & Disadvantages of each:• Choice:• Opportunity Cost:

You really want to have a new bike that is expensive. You have some money half. You see a video game that you

really want.• Resource:Money you have saved.• Goal:maximize enjoyment and satisfaction

• Alternative 1:• Alternative 2:• Advantages & Disadvantages of each:• Choice:• Opportunity Cost:

You finish your homework early. You are reading a great book, you

favorite TV show is on, and you have a new computer game. What

do you do?• Resource:Time• Goal:Maximize enjoyment

• Alternative 1:• Alternative 2:• Advantages & Disadvantages of each:• Choice:• Opportunity Cost:

Your best friend asks you to spend the night and you agree. Then another friend asks you to have dinner at his house. You

really want to have dinner at the other friend’s house.

• Resource:Time• Goal:Maximum enjoymen

• Alternative 1:• Alternative 2:• Advantages & Disadvantages of each:• Choice:• Opportunity Cost:

While riding your bike, you find a wallet. There is money inside and also an ID with an address. What

do you do?• Resource: Wallet• Goal: Honest, Spend the money

• Alternative 1:Keep the wallet• Alternative 2: return the wallet• Advantages & Disadvantages of each:• Choice:• Opportunity Cost:

You and your little sister are home alone after school. She wants you to help her with her

homework but you would like to play with your friends.

• Resource:Time• Goal:Being helpful, have a good time.

• Alternative 1: Help your sister• Alternative 2:Play with friends• Advantages & Disadvantages of each:• Choice:• Opportunity Cost:

Your best friend wants you to let him copy the answers to the math assignment. He say he

didn’t have time to do the assignment himself.

• Resource:your answers• Goal: Not get caught, To be cool.

• Alternative 1:let him copy• Alternative 2:Not let him copy• Advantages & Disadvantages of each:• Choice:• Opportunity Cost:

A group of your friends start picking on a student who doesn’t have many friends. You want to help him, but are afraid of what

other kids might think.• Resource: Picked on student• Goal: Being responsible, Being cool.

• Alternative 1:Look the other way• Alternative 2: Tell your friends to stop• Advantages & Disadvantages of each:• Choice:• Opportunity Cost:

A kid is picking on you and taking your lunch money.

• Resource: Bully• Goal: Not to get beat up, keep the money, not

get pushed around,

• Alternative 1:Fight back• Alternative 2: give him your money• Advantages & Disadvantages of each:• Choice:• Opportunity Cost:

You are skateboarding with friends. You find a downhill street

that would be really fun to go down, but there is an intersection at the bottom. Your friend goes down and then dares you to go.

• Resource:Downhill street with intersection• Goal: Enjoyment, Personal safety, being cool.

• Alternative 1: Don’t go down• Alternative 2: Go Down• Advantages & Disadvantages of each:• Choice:• Opportunity Cost:

You are the captain for picking teams for kickball in P.E. Your best friend is not very good.

• Resource: Being the Captain• Goal: Have the best team, loyalty.

• Alternative 1:Pick your friend• Alternative 2: Not pick your friend• Advantages & Disadvantages of each:• Choice:• Opportunity Cost:

You see lots of bruises on your friend and are worried about him.

He says he fell down, but you have seen bruises many times

• Resource:• Goal:

• Alternative 1:• Alternative 2:• Advantages & Disadvantages of each:• Choice:• Opportunity Cost:

You went camping over the weekend. When you get to class Monday morning and begin taking your books out of your backpack you notice that you forgot to remove your pocketknife from the pack before coming to school. The pocketknife is not allowed on school property.

• Resource:• Goal:

• Alternative 1:• Alternative 2:• Advantages & Disadvantages of each:• Choice:• Opportunity Cost:

There is a substitute teacher in your classroom. Other kids in the class are not following the class

rules and are misbehaving. What do you do?

• Resource:Substitute Teacher• Goal: Fit in, avoid getting in trouble, doing the right

thing.

• Alternative 1: Follow the rules (students)• Alternative 2: Join in with others misbehaving

(students)• Advantages & Disadvantages of each:• Choice:• Opportunity Cost: