Grades 1–2
Producers and Consumers
12 sentences to sort: who is the producer (the farmer who grows corn, the baker) and who is the consumer (the kid who buys the toy, the family at the restaurant).
Social studies worksheet · Needs and wants
You Can Only Pick One
Four simple trade-off choices (a kite or a puzzle, the pool or the park): kids pick one, write what they gave up and explain why.
- Grade level
- Grades K–2
- Time
- About 15 minutes
- Topic
- Needs and wants
- Answer key
- Not needed: answers vary
- Kids practice
- Needs and wants, Money and choices, Goods and services, Basic economics
What kids do
“When you pick one thing, you give up the other. That is called a trade-off. Make each choice, then say what you gave up.”
Printed on the sheet:
- Which choice was hardest? Why?
Teacher tip
Ask kids what they gave up and if it was worth it.
How to use it
- Talk about how needs are the same for everyone, and wants are different.
- Connect it to a class store or a pretend shopping trip.
- Use finished sheets for a quick gallery walk or a partner share.
Watch for
Money can be a sensitive topic. Keep examples pretend and never ask about family income.
Talk about it
- Why do we have to make choices with money?
- How does this connect to where we live?
Take it further
Plan a pretend class party on a budget.
US Letter, prints well in black and white. Free for home and classroom use: print as many copies as you need.
More needs and wants worksheets
Grades 1–2
From Farm to Table: Bread
Put 6 steps in order, from the farmer planting wheat to the store selling bread, and see how many workers help make one loaf.
Grades 1–2
Every Home Is a Shelter
Shelter is a need: match 6 kinds of homes, from a houseboat and a stilt house to a yurt and an adobe house, to how they are built, then draw your own home.
Grades 1–2
Bartering: Trading Without Money
Learn how people traded before money (bartering), answer 4 questions about trades and plan 3 swaps with friends.
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