Planning the inquiry

1. What is our purpose?

1a) To inquire into the following:
transdisciplinary theme
How we Organize Ourselves
An inquiry into the interconnectedness of human-made systems and
communities; the structure and function of organizations; societal and decision-
making; economic activities and their impact on humankind and the environment

central idea
Economic activity relies on systems of production, exchange and consumption of
goods and services.
Class/grade: 4 Age group: 8-10
School: School code:
Title:
Teacher(s): Alfonso
Date: November 5 - December 14, 2012
Proposed duration: number of hours over number of weeks


1b) Summative assessment task(s):
What are the possible ways of assessing students understanding of the central
idea? What evidence, including student-initiated actions, will we look for?

Goal - to be able to come up with products to be able to sell as a small business
in school
Role - Businessmen / Entrepreneur
Audience - school
Situation - You are an up and coming businessman, you have just recently
borrowed PHP 100 from your parents and would like to start up a business.
Using the PHP 100 your task now is to buy products from the local market and
sell them in school in order to pay back your parents (with interest) the money
that you loaned from them.
Product - business journal with strategies and earnings from the small business;
earnings chart with their capital, losses, earnings and profit.
2. What do we want to learn?
What are the key concepts (form, function, causation, change, connection,
perspective, responsibility, reflection) to be emphasized within this inquiry?
Key Concepts: Function, Connection and Responsibility
Related Concepts: Interdependence, Inequity and Fair Trade
What lines of inquiry will define the scope of the inquiry into the central idea?
The Role of Supply and Demand
The distribution of Goods and Services
Our responsibility as consumers.

What teacher questions/provocations will drive these inquiries?
What is economics? (function)
What are market systems? (function)
What is supply and demand (connection ,function, interdependence, fair
trade)
What are needs and wants? (responsibility)
What are resources? (function and interdependence)
What strategies can be used to come up with a good business? (connection
and inequity)
International Baccalaureate Organization 2011
Planning the inquiry
3. How might we know what we have learned?
This column should be used in conjunction with How best might we learn?
What are the possible ways of assessing students prior knowledge and skills?
What evidence will we look for?
Students will dissect the central idea to show what they initially know about the unit.
They will they express the central idea using a simpler statement.
What are the possible ways of assessing student learning in the context of the lines
of inquiry? What evidence will we look for?

See Attachment B for Assessment Opportunities
4. How best might we learn?
What are the learning experiences suggested by the teacher and/or students to
encourage the students to engage with the inquiries and address the driving
questions?
(Use Attachment C: Learning Engagements Chart)
What opportunities will occur for transdisciplinary skills development and for the
development of the attributes of the learner profile?
Thinking Skills - the students are able to show their understanding of the unit by
coming up with different questions that would further drive the inquiry. Likewise they
also developed this skill by coming up with strategies that would help make their
business successful.
Social Skills - The students are able to show their social skills by interviewing
resource persons and different people in their family and the community. They also
showed their social skills by engaging in businesses that would help them be
successful.
Communication Skills - The students are able to show their communication skills
by advertising their products and convincing members of the school to community to
purchase the different products that they were selling.

5. What resources need to be gathered?
What people, places, audio-visual materials, related literature, music, art, computer software, etc, will be available?
Videos on the economic cycle, the law of supply and demand
Resource persons (accountants and vendors)
Field trip: bank, market
How will the classroom environment, local environment, and/or the community be used to facilitate the inquiry?
The classroom will be full of books related to the unit
The community will serve as a place for the students to sell the different products that they have.
International Baccalaureate Organization 2011
Reflecting on the inquiry
6. To what extent did we achieve our purpose?
Assess the outcome of the inquiry by providing evidence of students understanding
of the central idea. The reflections of all teachers involved in the planning and
teaching of the inquiry should be included.
a. Relevant
The unit was a relevant experience for the students in that they were able to see how money moves. They
were exposed to the way banks functions and how small businesses (market vendors) are able to raise
money in order to make a living. These experiences helped them understand the skills that they would be
needing for their business.
b. Significant
The most significant experience of the students was the opportunity to sell different products that they
bought in the market. These products would be the basis of how they would pay back their loan, expand
their capital and come up with different strategies that would make them successful.
c. Engaging
The students were engaged in the way that they came up with different ways to make their business
successful using different strategies. Likewise they also came up with different ideas in order to stretch
their limited resources and expand/innovate on these resources when their capital had grown.
d. Challenging
The challenges of the unit were mainly to condense a very complicated topic in order for the students to
understand. Secondly, due to the time constraints as well as the school Christmas bazaar limited to
academic time in order to inquire on the third line of inquiry (responsibility of consumers).
e. Resources
The different resources used during the unit helped the students fully grasp the unit and the concepts
related to it. They were able to identify and apply concepts such as: needs and wants and the law of
supply and demand. Through our interview with resource persons and field trips the students were able to
see the movement of money and its function in society.
How you could improve on the assessment task(s) so that you would have a more
accurate picture of each students understanding of the central idea.
The assessments done by the teachers were designed and suited to measure the students
understanding of the central idea. Likewise the assessments made during this unit were developed to
ensure that the students would be able to handle and develop their own business. Lastly the summative
assessment also helped the students to think critically in order to develop and change their strategies in
order to further expand their business.
What was the evidence that connections were made between the central idea and
the transdisciplinary theme?
The students recognized that money is not easy to come by and that in order to make money it has to be
earned and used wisely in order for them to get the things that they need and want.
7. To what extent did we include the elements of the PYP?
What were the learning experiences that enabled students to:
develop an understanding of the concepts identified in What do we want to
learn?
Function - the students were able to understand the function of economics in our society. they were able
to learn that it is an essential part of their lives.
Connection - the students were able to see how different needs and wants in a particular location can
drive wealth or make their business either a success or not.
Responsibility - the students were able to understand that they have a responsibility to be honest in their
business and to ensure that their business does not take any shortcuts in order to be successful.
demonstrate the learning and application of particular transdisciplinary skills?
Thinking - the students were able to show their thinking skills by coming up with their own questions that
would drive the inquiry. Likewise they were able to show their thinking skills when planning their business.
Social - the students were able to demonstrate this skill by interacting and interviewing different people in
order to grasp and understand the unit. They further demonstrated their social skills by engaging in
business that required them to talk, convince/persuade people to buy their products.
Self-management - the students developed this skill by making informed and practical choices in their
businesses. They would weigh the practicality of the products that they would buy.
Communication - the students developed their communication skills by showing respect and care
towards their potential customers. They also exhibited confidence during the selling period in order to
convince the members of the community to patronize their products.
Research - the students developed this skill by using their business journal to reflect and strategize on
the successes and failures of their business. The journal enabled them to research on what to change
and change for their next business day.
develop particular attributes of the learner profile and/or attitudes?
In each case, explain your selection.
Risk-Taker- students take new roles and try new things like going to public market
and selling their own products in school. They show confidence in promoting their
products.
Thinker- students think of best strategies to sell their goods. they also consider the
profit that theyll add to the capital to make their money grow.
Inquirer- students interview vendors on how do they make their profit and inquire
some of their strategies to keep their business going.


International Baccalaureate Organization 2011
Reflecting on the inquiry
8. What student-initiated inquiries arose from the learning?
Record a range of student-initiated inquiries and student questions and highlight any
that were incorporated into the teaching and learning.
Why do we have to pay taxes?
Why are people corrupt?
What happens if we have products that are not sold?
At this point teachers should go back to box 2 What do we want to learn? and
highlight the teacher questions/provocations that were most effective in driving the
inquiries.
What student-initiated actions arose from the learning?
Record student-initiated actions taken by individuals or groups showing their ability
to reflect, to choose and to act.
Students suggested ways how to promote their products during the bazaar. They
came up with captions for their posters to encourage people buy for them to raise
fund for the Project Feed.
Students were able to come up with their strategies for them to sell their products
when they were still in school during the pre-selling sessions.

9. Teacher notes
The execution of the summative assessments were effective and efficiently
done
The lessons/concepts discussed were very well integrated into the
summative assessment.
Students understandings and application of the concepts taught and
discussed were applied in their summative assessment and also the action
part of the unit.
International Baccalaureate Organization 2011
Attachment...

A. Key Learning Outcomes
Key Understanding
What do we want students to understand by the end of the unit?
Economic activities are reliant on the flow of goods and services.
Economics is about making choices in allocating limited resources to meet their unlimited needs and wants.
In order to meet needs and wants, money must be earned and informed choices be made.
Knowledge outcomes and Skills outcomes
What do we want students to be able to know by the end of the unit?
What do we want students to be able to do by the end of the unit?
to be familiar with the laws of supply and demand
to identify what are needs and wants and how they dictate supply and demand
to determine the flow of money from household to manufacturers
to determine the distribution of goods and services
to recognize that as consumers, we should pay our taxes

B. Assessment Opportunities
Line of Inquiry What will be assessed? How will evidence be collected? What type of assessment will be
used?
The Role of Supply and Demand Economics is about making choices in
allocating limited resources to meet their
unlimited needs and wants.


Knowledge Product
Observations
Rubric
Anecdotes

The Distribution of Goods and
Services
Economic activities are reliant on the flow
of goods and services.
Knowledge Product
Observations
Rubric
Anecdotes
Our Responsibility as
Consumers
In order to meet needs and wants,
money must be earned and informed
choices be made.

Knowledge Product
Observations
Rubric
Anecdotes

C. Learning Engagements
Tuning in and preparation to find out:
What variety of activities will be used to:
engage all students in the topic? hook?
assess prior knowledge?
refine further planning?
lead into the finding out experiences?
Engagement and gathering prior knowledge, pre-assessment, questions for inquiry, goal setting. Sometimes students will require some immersion in the topic if little is known/ experienced.
Students will interview and create charts that would show their understanding of needs and wants from the following: themselves, members of their family and the school.
Students watch videos related to the unit.

Finding Out
Data collection
Experiences to assist students to gather new information
about the topic
Experiences and texts that add to the knowledge base.
Emphasis on gathering first-hand data in a range of ways
(usually shared experiences)
Teachers & Students Questions
Teacher and student questions that help drive the inquiry
Focus questions to for inquiry
Sorting Out
Gauging, organizing or representing new
information
Activities to assist students to process and work
with the information and ideas they have gathered
about the topic (including exploring values)
Organizing, analyzing and communicating the
information gathered using a range of vehicles (e.g
through Maths, Arts, English, Drama, Music or IT)
Reading of books and articles related to the unit

Interview people in the market and bank

Watch videos related to the laws of supply and demand,
goods and services

Interview resource speakers about our responsibilities
as consumers

What is economics? (function)

What are market systems? (function)

What is supply and demand (connection ,function,
interdependence, fair trade)

What are needs and wants? (responsibility)

What are resources? (function and interdependence)

What strategies can be used to come up with a good
business? (connection and inequity)

Info graphics: students create info
graphics about supply and demand

Connection Map: Students will be given
terms used during the unit. They will try
to make connections using the terms
identifying the relationship that exist.

Going Further
Activities to challenge and extend
Raising new questions, extending experiences, challenging assumptions. May be individually negotiated.
Students suggested ways how to promote their products during the bazaar. They came up with captions for their posters to encourage people buy for them to raise fund for
the Project Feed.
Students were able to come up with their strategies for them to sell their products when they were still in school during the pre-selling sessions.
Drawing conclusions
Raising new questions, extending experiences, challenging assumptions. May be individually negotiated. Students draw conclusions of what they have learnt. This is an
important time to evaluate the success of the unit and the needs and achievements of individuals. This is where students put it all together.
The students were able to come up with the following conclusions: economics deals with varying needs and wants that have to be satisfied with limited resources of the
world. Secondly the students also concluded that businesses arent just platforms for selling products but also an avenue of development and critical thinking in order to
make their businesses successful.
Reflecting and Taking Action
To reflect on what has been learnt and process of learning. It is important that students be given opportunities to act upon what they have learnt. Actions are things that students can themselves and from which they
can see results.
The action component of the students was to come up with a successful business plan that the students would implement for the Christmas Bazaar. The students also
planned and allocated the budget that was going to be used for the booths. Likewise they also planned and created banners, streamers and on the day of the event
advertised the booths to the attendees of the bazaar. Supporting the Project Feed became their inspiration to raise funds.