A Chair for My Mother: Earning and Saving Money

Amy Zimmermann
5/8/15
Unit essential questions: In what ways do people use money in the community?
Lesson question: How can I earn, save, and spend money on something that I need or want?
Common Core or other appropriate standard: CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.2.MD.C.8
Solve word problems involving dollar bills, quarters, dimes, nickels, and pennies, using $ and
symbols appropriately. Example: If you have 2 dimes and 3 pennies, how many cents do you
have?
Lesson objective:

Assessment:

Students will make a real world connection by

telling one reasonable way to earn money and
one reasonable way to save money for
something they want.

Teacher will review student products.

+3 ideas are clearly stated, reasonable
suggestions on how to earn and save money
+2 student includes one idea for earning and
saving money
+1 students ideas are unreasonable, did not
include information on earning/saving money
(reteach)

Opening:
I will tell the students about a time when I wanted something, but wasnt able to afford it. I will
then tell how I earned enough money, how I saved it, and how I felt when I bought it
I will invite students to share their own stories. What did you want? Were you able to buy it?
How did you earn and save money?
Procedure:
Read A Chair for My Mother by Vera B. Williams. Stop to point out relevant vocabulary
(bargain, boss, coin, tips). Students will make predictions and answer questions throughout the
reading.
Check for comprehension Verbal questions and class discussion.
Independent, quiet thinking time. Ask students to write down a list of things that they would like
to buy. This is something that they will have to save up for and may have to make sacrifices like
the characters in the book. After a few minutes have students circle the one thing that they
would like to earn and save money for.

Remind the students how the characters in the book earned and saved money to buy the chair
(worked at a diner, saved coins in a jar, puts away half). Allow students to offer suggestions on
how they might earn and save money to buy their desired item.
Tiered by product:
1. Visual/Spatial. Students will complete the Saving Money Story Board.
2. Intrapersonal. Students will write a journal entry entailing the thing they want to purchase,
how they will earn money, how they will save money, and how they will feel after buying it.
3. Verbal/Linguistic: The teacher will provide students will four index cards. The students will
write notes detailing (1) What they want to buy, (2) How they will earn money, (3) How they
will save money, and (4) How they think they will feel after buying that thing. These students
will make a one minute (approx) presentation to the class.
Closure: Today we decided on things that want for ourselves. Each of you decided how you
would earn and save money to buy the thing that you wanted. This is an important decision for
people every day in their lives. Sometimes people are not able to buy the things that they want
and must save for the things that they need. We will discuss this later in the week in our social
studies lesson Wants vs. Needs.
Materials:

A Chair for My Mother by Vera B. Williams

Saving Money Story Board
Journal Directions
Index cards

Name _______________________
Date______________________
Write a journal entry about one thing youd like to buy. Questions to answer:

What do I want to buy? (one thing)

How will I earn money?
How will I save money?
How do I think I will feel after buying that thing?

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Name _______________________________

Date

______________
Directions: Answer each of the questions by writing notes to yourself. Use
these notes to make a one minute presentation to the class. Make sure you
include all four questions!
1. What do I want to buy? (one thing)

2. How will I earn money?

3. How will I save money?

4. How do I think I feel after I buy that

thing?