Give students a 1931 paycheck, rising bills, and depression-era crises and see if they can make the right choices to survive the Great Depression.
This hands-on simulation puts students in charge of a Great Depression–era household budget. Working with historically grounded income and expense data, students must stretch limited funds, respond to unexpected events, and decide what gets paid—and what doesn’t. With two contrasting family profiles, students see how class, employment, and opportunity shaped survival during the 1930s.
What’s Included:
Two distinct 1930s family profiles
Monthly budget sheets using historical income and cost data
Event cards with unexpected financial challenges
Reflection and comparison worksheet
Teacher guide with clear implementation steps
Rubric
What Students Will Learn
Practice budgeting and financial decision-making under scarcity
Understand how unemployment and wage cuts affected families differently
Analyze cause and effect through economic choices
Compare how social class influenced survival during the Great Depression
Strengthen critical thinking through structured reflection
Grades: 7–10
Duration: 45–60 minutes
DOK Level 3
Format: Word Doc
