Potato: A Tale from the Great Depression Lesson for Grades 2-4

Potato: A Tale from the Great Depression book cover

After reading and discussing a story about a family during the Great Depression, students differentiate between goods, services, barter, and money. Students are led through several rounds of a barter activity that incorporates math skills. Through this activity, students learn about the difficulties of using barter to satisfy wants.

•  Lesson (pdf)

This lesson plan is designed for teaching grades 2, 3, and 4.

Book written by Kate Lied / ISBN: 0-7922-6946-2. This book is in print and available.

Braille and Talking Book versions are available via the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled. Library of Congress catalogue numbers are provided for accessible versions. The books can be accessed through BARD (Braille and Audio Reading Download). The book is available in Braille LCCN 97992503.

---

If you have difficulty accessing this content due to a disability, please contact us at 314-444-4662 or economiceducation@stls.frb.org.

Find More Economics and Personal Finance Resources

Education Level: Pre-K-5
Subjects: Literature History Economics
Concepts: Trade/International Trade Money Wants Consumers/Producers Great Depression Income
Resource Types: Lesson
Languages: English
Back to Top