Title:  Economy of Mexico

Grade Level:  7th

Subject Areas:  Geography and Math

Learner Outcomes:
     1. The students will explain how Mexicans earn a living.
     2. The students will identify the three economic regions of Mexico.
     3. The students will discuss the economic challenges that face modern Mexico.
     4. The students will graph the economic changes over the past 100 years.
 

Duration of Lesson: 45-minute session

Materials:  dictionaries, Internet accessible computers, blank graphs, Microsoft Excel software

Technology Tools/Courseware: Internet, Microsoft Excel, blank disk

Teacher Notes:
     · Acceptable Use Policy form on file
     · Access to Success Lab/Media Center
     · Students will have been taught the use of Excel prior to this lesson.

Procedures:
     1. Have students define vocabulary dealing with the Economy of Mexico.
     2. Have a brief discussion of the vocabulary, the economic regions and the economic 
     challenges that the people of Mexico face.
     3. Students will use the Internet to research how the Mexican economy has changed over
     the past 100 years. Using a blank graph and colored pencils, they will then complete a 
     graph showing this information.
     4. Students will use Microsoft Excel to generate a table and graph.
 

Modifications:  Modifications will be made based on those listed in students' IEP.

Enrichment:
     1. Have students compare subsistence farming with plantation farming.  How many 
     similarities and differences can they list?
     2. Organize students into three groups and assign one of Mexico’s economic regions to 
     each group.  Have group members read and discuss text relating to their assigned 
     region.  Then form new groups of three students, consisting of one member from each of 
     the original groups.  Members of the new groups are responsible for teaching one 
     another about the economic region they studied.  At the end of the activity, all students 
     should be able to compare the three regions.
     3. Students give a presentation of their Excel graphs.

Evaluation/Assessment:  Student copy of Excel graph.

State and National Standards:
     · West Virginia Instructional Goals and Objectives:

      Geography:
     7.20, 7.33, 7.10

   Mathematics:
   7.19, 7.30, 7.46, 7.31, 7.56, 7.54

   Language Arts:
   7.27, 7.29
 

•   National Standards:

    Mathematics:
   1    Uses a variety of strategies in the problem-solving process
   6   Understands and applies basic and advanced concepts of statistics and data analysis
     9   Understands the general nature and uses of mathematics

     Language Arts:
   1   Uses the general skills and strategies of the writing process
     4  Gathers and uses information for research purposes
     7  Uses reading skills and strategies to understand and interpret a variety of 
         informational texts
 

Job/Career Clusters: Fine Arts/Humanities

References:

• Geography The World And Its People,Glencoe/McGraw-Hill; Columbus, Ohio, 1998.