It Began with Lemonade
By Gideon Sterer, Illustrated by Lian Cho – Penguin Random House/2021
One scorching hot summer day, a spunky young girl decides to sell lemonade . . . only to find there are too many other young entrepreneurs on her street with the same idea. So she sets off with her lemonade stand and ends up at the river’s edge, where she discovers a most unexpected, quirky, and very thirsty clientele.
Reading Level: 2.0
Interest level: P-2
Economic Concepts:
- Consumer
- Demand
- Producer
- Supply
- Goods
- Money
- Services
I LOVE Strawberries
Author Shannon Anderson, Illustrator Jaclyn Sinquett – Finding Minds Press/2022
Through Jolie’s comical scrapbook-style journal entries, young readers will learn how she convinces the “old people” (aka her parents) to let her grow her own strawberries. Growing strawberries is a lot of work and responsibility, but Jolie is ready with the help of her faithful rabbit Munchy! Together they find out just how delicious, rewarding, and sometimes complicated it can be to grow your own food.
Interest level: 1-4
Economic Concepts
- Consumer
- Producer
- Productive Resources
- Goods
- Services
- Specialization
Wants vs Needs vs Robots
Author/Illustrator Michael Rex – Penguin Random House/2023
Do you know the difference between a want and a need? It can be a hard thing to understand, especially when you want something so much that you feel like you have to have it. But some things aren’t essential—like jellybean tacos and groovy boots. Other things are essential—like fuel and feet to put the boots on. The robots in this book are here to show you the difference as they make trades to get some things they really want (hooray!) but give away some things they need (oops!).
Reading level: 1.0
Interest level: K-3
Economic Concepts
- Need
- Wants
- Scarcity
Virginia Elementary School Librarians and Teachers:
To learn more about the Reading Makes Cents program including how your school can get a set of these three books and a ton of resources and support, click here.
Each year the Virginia Council on Economic Education provides comprehensive online resources customized to the three featured books in order to help solidify the concepts and further engage students.
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