Simply Put: A Study in Economics- Review and Giveaway!

Does just the mention of the word Economics put the fear of God into your hearts?  It does for me!  Seriously, friends!  I do NOT remember talking about economics in high school.  If we did, my apologies to my teachers, I obviously was too busy making googly eyes with my, then boyfriend, now husband.  But I do remember Economics in college and it still makes me want to cry.  I loathed every minute of it.  I was confused every minute of it.  And it was the only proudly earned "C" I made in college!

That is why I have therefore avoided teaching it to my kids.  I do after all get to make those kind of choices as a homeschool mom.  But, yes, I admit, a little self-centered on my part.  Plus, as far as I have seen there are just not many Economics programs out there for homeschooling families that don't bore them to tears or lose them with fancy terms and diagrams. Which is exactly why Catherine Jamie wrote Simply Put: A Study in Economics- she wanted people with children ages 12 and up to have an alternative to what was currently on the market.  And exactly why I am excited to be on the launch team for this new curriculum.  I needed an alternative!

Simply Put is a 136 page paperback book that is divided into 36 chapters.  By reading two chapters a week, one can finish this course in a semester, which is what many high schools require for graduation.  By taking one chapter at a time and adding a few resources that Catherine recommends, you can possibly make this a full year credit if you so desire.  For grading purposes there is a mid term and final test included.  I received a pdf Teacher's Key that has the answers to these tests as well as two additional activities to use with larger groups.  While the first activity is about the National Budget and can be done by an individual, the second is a Fair Trade in Action game and is recommended for a large group.  The cards used to play are included for you to print out.  Looks like fun, but since we do not currently do school with a large group, we have not attempted to play it.

Also included in the actual book are review questions for each chapter, a glossary for unfamiliar words and several appendices with additional information.  One of the things I found interesting about this particular book is that the chapters are short.  As in one- 4 pages each.  That alone made me relax!  The second thing I noticed right away was the lack of a million charts.  That is what I remember about my college class.  Charts and drawings.  And none of them could I explain to you.  Catherine does have some charts here and there, but she relies more heavily on careful explanation and lots of real life examples, which I highly appreciated.  Her information seems at first glance to be slightly on the simplified level, but she does indeed advertise this as a introductory level class.  Because of that, I like how it is written and that it simply introduces various economic concepts such as supply and demand, price gouging and government intervention.  For many high school students, this just the amount of information they need.  If those topics indeed spark an interest in your student to know more, they will have a good foundation level to further their studies.  Bear in mind, Catherine is a conservative and it shows in her writing.  While that did not bother me in the least, it was quite refreshing at times, if that is not your particular stance, you may be bothered by some ideas that she shares.

I like this book.  While it is not terribly in depth, I think it is a good solid introduction to the basics of Economics and I will be using it next semester with my 10th grader.

About the author - Catherine is a homeschooling mom of 12, ten whom have already graduated.  She graduated from MIT and has spent much of her time traveling and schooling her kids, as well as teaching economics and history classes to other homeschoolers.  She is the author of several books, a speaker, and runs her own homeschool resource center, Creative Leaning Connection.  You can also find Catherine on facebook!

Simply Put: A Study in Economics can be purchased on sale for $6.99 from CurrClick and will include the files for both books or from Creative Learning Connection for $25.00 for the physical set of student book and teacher's key.

I have been authorized to give away one set of ebooks- the student book as well as the teacher's key to one of our readers.  Just leave me a comment and tell me what subject scares you the most to teach and you will be entered to win!  Drawing will be next Friday, Dec. 6th.  

Our launch team is also hosting a mega giveaway with some great prizes!  You can visit Bow of Bronze for your chance to win!

Blessings,