Economics Independent Reading Project

Overview: You must finish reading at least 250 pages of your book by Monday, April 14th. To do so, you must read your book every day. If you read 6 pages every day, you will finish by the due date.

The TWO parts of the IR project are described below. You must turn in all parts of the IR project and receive a passing grade (65% or above) on them in order to pass Economics.

WEEKLY RESPONSES

• Two-paragraph response on the reading you complete each week (should be roughly 50 pages)
• Due on the following Mondays: 3/10, 3/17, 3/31, 4/7, 4/14
• Each one counts as two homework grades
• In the HEADER for your weekly assignment, be sure to include the following information:

1. Author's name
2. Title of the book
3. Date the assignment is due
4. Pages read that week

• PARAGRAPH #1: summarize the most important/interesting aspects of the week’s reading

• PARAGRAPH #2: will be based on one of the following options:

1. Quote: Copy a significant passage from the book (with a citation), explain briefly the context of the quote, and then describe its significance. Why did you choose it? What does it mean to you? How is it important in the book?
2. Economics Reflection: How does the book relate to economics? What “economics” concepts do you see at work in the book? How so?
3. Personal Connection: Write about something in the book that relates to something you’ve experienced or felt. Describe the moment in the book. Then, discuss how you can relate.
4. The Curious Mind: Research something that catches your attention in the book that you want to understand a little better. Explain what you find out and cite any sources.
5. Bias: Discuss whether the author of your book lets his/her personal opinions affect the way they write about their subject. Where do you think they fit on the political spectrum? Use specific examples from the book to support your ideas.
6. Vocabulary: Find at least 5 challenging vocabulary words in your book. For each word, quote the sentence from the book that contains that word (include the page number), and write the dictionary definition. Note: You must also use the vocab words in your 1st paragraph summary

• You may only repeat an option once except #2 for which there is no limit.

FINAL BOOK REPORT

• 750 word (minimum) essay due Monday, April 28th
• Counts as a test grade
• A first draft of your introduction will be due on Wednesday, April 16th
• Choose 1 of 3 essay options below to write about
• Whatever option you choose, your essay must have at least 4 citations and a works cited page

Essay Options

1. ECONOMIC TERMS: Choose at least 4 economics terms from class and explain how these ideas are illustrated in the book. Give specific examples from the book to support your claims.


2. ECONOMIC LESSONS: Discuss what we can learn about “economics” from this book. Use specific examples from the book to support your claims.


3. PROBLEM/SOLUTION/PERSPECTIVE: Identify one social problem discussed in the book and answer the following questions:
a. According to the author, what are the root-causes of this problem? (1¶)
b. Does the author think this problem can be solved? Why or why not? Describe any solutions offered. (1¶)
c. Based on your answers to the questions above, where on the political spectrum would you place this author (ex: liberal, conservative, centrist, etc.)? Why? (1¶)
d. Do you agree/disagree with the way this problem is presented? Do you think the solutions offered by the author will work? (1¶)