Chapters 2 - 4

GRADE 7 SOCIAL STUDIESUNIT 2: ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT

1. What goods/services are used to satisfy needs/wants ?

2. How can we produce these goods/services ?

3. How will we distribute them ?

The 3 Basic Economic Questions

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The 3 Types of Economies

1. Pre-Industrial: Hand–made goods, no factories, simple tools, trading or selling

2. Industrial: Use of manufacturing technologies to produce goods for sale

3. Post-Industrial: Computers and the Information Age

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FIRST NATIONS & INUIT ECONOMIES

The Canadian Economy IN THE PAST

GOODS & SERVICES:

• Depended on land and natural resources• Shelter: snow, whale bones, stone, sod, caribou hide,

seal hide, wood• Food: caribou, moose, seal, fish, deer, buffalo• Clothing and Footwear: caribou hide, seal hide

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PRODUCTION:

• Made by hand using stone and bone tools• No wastage – all parts of caribou used• People traveled to harvest/hunt resources as

they became available• All people worked at certain jobs – eg. men

hunted and women prepared meat/hides• Production included prayer and ceremonies to

show respect and give thanks for resources

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DISTRIBUTION:

• Everyone helped in production, so everyone shared what was produced• In some areas, people enforced clear boundaries;

in other areas, people shared resources – no one “owned” the land - no private ownership• Trade networks (eg. Corn for moose or beaver

hides)

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EUROPEAN NEWCOMERS (1500)

GOODS & SERVICES:

• Europeans came to North America for several reasons (see page 31):

1. European countries wanted to take over land

2. They believed their culture/religion should be spread around the world

3. Individuals were looking for economic opportunity

4.Individuals hoped to be given or to buy land

5. Europeans were looking for natural resources (eg. Timber, furs, fish, seal oil and pelts, minerals)

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PRODUCTION:

• 1700’s: things produced at home, by hand, using simple tools and animals (Pre-Industrial Age)• Some people specialized (eg. Blacksmiths,

bakers, weavers, shoesmiths, etc.)• In cities there were workshops/stores to buy

things. In the country, farmers did everything themselves.• 1800’s: machines and factories (Industrial Age)

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DISTRIBUTION:

• People believed in the right to make as much profit as possible.• The main goal of working was to benefit

yourself / your family.• From 1500’s to 1700’s, things changed from • “doing with what you had or made yourself” to

“distribution through money and markets”.

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THE IMPACT OF EUROPEAN CONTACT

EARLY CONTACT IN THE MARITIMES:

• CONTACT: when Europeans first came to North America• Caused serious problems for First Nations and Inuit• First Nations were curious and helpful• Europeans were interested in getting furs, and First

Nations were interested in knives, pots, etc. (fur trade)

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TREATIES:

• Define “treaty” (page 37)• Some Conflicts: between Europeans and First Nations

and between French and English Europeans• British and First Nations made treaties (agreements) to

settle disputes and agree on terms of trade • Between 1717 and 1779 Britain and First Nations entered

into a number of treaties - called Covenant Chain of Treaties or the Treaties of Peace and Friendship • Main idea of the treaties: First Nations agreed to act

peacefully towards the British, and the British agreed to respect First Nations’ rights.• First Nations did not agree to give up land or natural

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THE EFFECTS OF THE FUR TRADE:

First Nations economies changed because of the fur trade:

More hunting for furs (fox, beaver) to trade to Europeans, and less hunting and fishing for their own needs (therefore, the need for European goods).

With more hunting for furs, the beaver and fox populations dwindled.

Why didn’t First Nations go back to hunting and fishing? Read last paragraph, p. 37.

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THE EFFECTS OF

EUROPEAN SETTLEMENT:

The European idea of Private Ownership did not mix well with First Nations beliefs and economies.

European impacts:• Forests cut down• Lands cleared and fenced for farming• Roads and towns built• Rivers, lakes, oceanfront areas taken over• Europeans were taking over land, not sharing it

This drastically reduced hunting and fishing areas.

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Canada has a CAPITALIST economy based on 2 main ideas:

1. Goods & Services are distributed by buying & selling

2. Individuals are free to become as wealthy as they can

Most goods & service are produced by private companies.

The main goal of companies is to make a profit.

Most people earn money by:

- owning a business or working for a business

The Canadian Economy IN THE PRESENT

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The main differences between CAPTALISM & SOCIALISM:

Canada has a capitalist economy, but we also have some socialist ideas (eg. Govt. programs like medicare).

CAPITALISM SOCIALISMWhat is most important?

Individual Freedom (to make profit)

What’s best for the group (society)

Who decides what g/s are produced?

Individuals Government

How do people meeting their needs?

Depends on wealth Every person should receive enough

What creates wealth and improves society?

Competition Co-operation

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“Capitalism” comes from the word capital, which means the money (and other things) invested to start and run a business

PROFIT: money the business owner makes (after expenses).

Businesses are started by people who see a need for particular goods and services in a community.

When a business starts up, it helps create wealth. How? See paragraph 3 on page 46.

There are many different types of businesses:

Small businesses: - single-owner, …

Medium-sized businesses: - partnerships, family businesses,…

Large businesses: - corporations,…

BUSINESS

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WHAT IS POVERTY?

1. When someone has a lowerstandard of living thanmost people in society

2. When the cost of meetingyour basic needs is higherthan your income.

Standard of Living: a measure of how much “buying power” you have

EXPENSES > INCOME

POVERTY

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When INCOME > EXPENSES, we say that you have

ECONOMIC SECURITY.

THE POVERTY CYCLE:

When you don’t have enough income

to meet your basic needs, it is hard to

get what you need to improve your life.

See examples, page 52 and Voices, page 53

A cycle is when the same events keep happening over again, with the same results

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PERSONAL CAPITAL: anything you have that can help you improve your economic situation.

Examples: Savings, Property, Skills, Willingness to work hard

How Can You Create Personal Capital?

- Use money wisely (save some)

- Buy a home (see diagram, page 55)

- Get training, education, skills (even if you need to borrow)

PERSONAL CAPITAL

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There are 4 main economic sectors:

1. PRIMARY SECTOR: Harvesting or extracting natural resources. Eg. Farming, fishing, forestry, mining

2. SECONDARY SECTOR: Construction or manufacturing. Eg. Carpenter, factory worker

3. TERTIARY SECTOR: Providing services to others. Eg. Sales people, bus drivers, teachers, nurses

4. QUATERNARY SECTOR: Working with ideas and information. Eg. Research, computer programmers

A DIVERSIFIED economy is one that has a good balance of jobs in all sectors, but mostly in tertiary and quaternary.

KINDS OF JOBS

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Circle Graph: good for showing what part of the whole something is.

STATISTICS & GRAPHS:

Line Graph: good for showing how something changes over time.

FOUR TYPES OF GRAPHS (see pages 65-66):

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Bar Graph: good for comparing 2 or more sets of statistics.

Pictograph: uses symbols or pictures to show statistics.

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No country’s economy is separate from the economies of other countries. Almost all countries sell goods and services to other countries and buy goods and services from other countries. Canada’s main trading partner is the United States.Trading can be good:

- It increases the products available to people

- It earns money for your country

Trading can be bad:

- If you import more than you export

- If the demand for your products goes down, price goes down

THE GLOBAL ECONOMY

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FORECAST: A best guess about what it will be like in the future, based on information about what’s happening now.

To forecast, you must look at social, economic and demographic trends.

TREND: A pattern of change over time.

DEMOGRAPHICS: Statistics about the makeup of a population. Eg. Age, gender, where people live,…

ECONOMIC FORECASTING

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