P2PU | Independent Reading - History / Social Studies - Level 1 | Reading Response

Reading Response - Notice and Investigate

Read for at least 2 more hours. Your goal is to finish your book or article(s) before the 4 Tasks of this Challenge are completed.

You can do this in one sitting or you can do it 4 times for thirty minutes each time or 6 times for twenty minutes each. But it has to be focused, uninterrupted reading. No multi-tasking during your reading time.

After you've read your book or your article for at least more more 2 hours, open a NEW Google Document and plan to write for about 30 minutes.

Begin by freewriting about your text. Write non-stop for 5 or ten minutes about anything that comes into your head about your book or article.

Then turn to the Literature Response Guides or to this guide, "General Response to a Non-Fiction Article. Describe how something is an example of a basic pattern that you've learned about in other books or articles or other media. Or describe something about a character, the plot, the theme, or some other element of your text.

Share your Doc with a teacher and a couple of peers, and ask them to make a couple of comments. Do not publish it on Youth Voices yet. Also make your document public.

In the Post Comment button here (on P2PU) add a link to your Google Document. You can find the link to your Google Document under the Share button. Do this before you click Yes, I'm done .

We encourage students to break out of the overly structured guides and create your own kinds of response. However, we do ask you to keep in mind the following guidelines:

Begin by doing a freewrite: your first thoughts about this section of the book or article. You'll need to revise this writing before you publish it on Youth Voices.
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Be specific about your response to your reading, and give an example from the text. Quote from the text.
Quote a second section from the text when you make connections, ask questions, track elements of the text, or compare it to other things.
End by predicting what you think might happen next, and say how you feel about continuing your reading.

If you are taking an economics class or if you just interested in economics. Read Sacred Economics, (in our Youth Voices Crocooc folder) by Charles Eisenstein.

About the Author

Charles Eisenstein is a teacher, speaker, and writer focusing on themes of civilization, consciousness, money, and human cultural evolution.

Learn more about Charles

Get the Book

True to the gift economy, the book is offered on a "pay what you want" basis, as well as hard copy. Learn more about the options below.

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Task Discussion

JohnathanR said:

https://docs.google.com/a/bronxbash.com/document/d/1n-5JDMFu3r-ud4f5a1TQ9mCco0Qcw31ejSBbgWmFDmA/edit

on April 5, 2013, 12:59 p.m.

Miguel said:

Something that I have been interested in learning more about has been economics. I remember Mr. Fitzgerald talking about it last year, but I wasn’t able to fully comprehend it due to my excessive tardiness in the class. Lately, the issue has caught my eye again, and so I decided to read “Introduction to Economic Analysis” by R. Preston McAfee.

Within the very first paragraph, I was able to make a response to the text. The word “allocation” rings a bell and I know I’ve heard it before. It could possibly mean "distribution," since goods and services are meant to be given out. I’ve learned that economists study markets because they're responsible for supplying people with goods. Within markets are different types such as stock markets, commodities markets, farmer markets, auction markets, and even ephemeral markets. But what exactly is the purpose for each of these markets? What do they sell? Many people are in high demand of marijuana, although it's still illegal in most states.

The following paragraph really made me think if stock markets are just made for trading. I do know, however, that a physical marketplace consists of stores such as Target, Best Buy, Rite-Aid, or even the local grocery store. When we enter these markets, us, the consumers, browse for items until we find what we like. These stores actually compete with each other in an attempt to make us shop there, which is surprising because we usually don’t see it that way. A patron is basically a regular customer, so our patronage is the constant support we give from buying said items.

The most important thing in buying and selling is price. Everyone loves getting things for cheap, or for a reasonable price. But price isn't the only thing that makes us a regular customer. When buying big products such a televisions, it's very important we feel that they are delivered on time and with little to no trouble, or that they can be put on layaway. How well these items look and feel are also a dominant factor in the exchange of goods.

British Petroleum sells crude oil to gasoline consumers and refineries, which are big industrial plants. BP determines how much they are going to charge for oil by using a demand model. I also noticed that the words "economic analysis" is repeated throughout the paragraph. I think this has to do with how economists predict how scarce resources will be delivered.

In economics, a positive analysis explains the truth, like why things work the way they do using statements or scientific predictions. A normative analysis, however, is the exact opposite. They use economics to make statements of how things should be using opinions.

Cost-benefit analysis is used a lot of the time for almost anything. This analysis is done to figure out how good or bad, a planned project will turn out. In the case of a park being built, I still don't understand why those who own property are harmed?

When it comes to doing a cost-benefit analysis, welfare plays a huge role since the government has to give money to the poor. It has been reported that over 100 million people are on some type of welfare in the U.S. Most people receive Food Stamps to help by basic food items, so the removal of taxes for those products will greatly help the poor. If a property tax were used to help pay for an opera theater, the cost of admission might be cheap, but it doesn't change the fact that a majority of property taxes are paid by lower and middle income people, while most opera-goers are rich.

Economists use the term "opportunity cost" to remind us of the strange way we view the idea of cost. Opportunity cost does not only apply to when we buy things, but decisions we make on a regular basis. For example, I have many alternatives of what to do each day after school. I can stay home and watch an online movie, go out with friends to an actual theater, visit my cousin and play videogames, or go to work and make money. If I decide to stay home and watch a movie online, my opportunity cost is going out with friends to a theater.

The Opportunity Cost is basically what you miss from selecting something else, not just the price. This also applies to how much time is wasted on the option chosen, compared to how much time you would save or waste with the other alternative. Fines, as in penalties, also have an opportunity cost. A judge will sentence you to either pay a certain amount of money, or spend time in jail for the committed crime. If you chose to pay a decent amount of money to avoid jail time, you will most likely be broke in the aftermath, but remain a free man. If the price was more than you could afford, then you would be imprisoned without a doubt, but still get to keep your money. The defendant will have to consider liberty or bankruptcy.

on Feb. 21, 2013, 1:34 p.m.

Monisha Nelson said:

Independent Reading

on Nov. 26, 2012, noon