Online Lesson

Costs and Benefits of 'The Three Little Pigs'

Introduction:

What can "The Three Little Pigs" teach us about decision making?
One pig wanted to hurry and build his house so he could go out and play. One pig spent a little more time building his house, but he still skimped on quality so he could go and play. When the wolf came, down went the houses!
The cost of doing quick work hardly matched the benefit of being able to play!

Task:

In this lesson, students will Identify the costs and benefits of decisions.

Process:

A cost is what you give up when you decide to do something. A benefit is something that satisfies your wants. When making a decision, students should consider the costs and the benefits of that decision.
	Click on "The Three Little Pigs" to hear a story about "The Three Little Pigs."

Would you build a house that you knew a wolf could blow down? Why did the first little pig build his house of straw? So, when he built his house out of straw he had the BENEFIT of being able to play all those other days! He made a decision and the BENEFIT of being able to play those extra days was what he gained! But what did the first little pig lose? Yes, he lost his house.
	He made a decision and the COST of that decision was that the wolf could blow his house down. The second little pig made a decision, too.
He decided to build his house out of wood. What was the BENEFIT of that decision? What did he gain? Yes, he gained a nice wooden house and a few days to play. When the second little pig made the decision to build his house out of wood, there was also a COST. What was the COST? What did he give up?
	The third little pig built his house out of bricks. He made the decision to build his house out of bricks and he had a COST and a BENEFIT, too. When he built his house out of bricks, what was his COST? What did he have to give up that the other pigs got to do? When he built his house out of bricks, what was his BENEFIT?

The first little pig built his house out of straw. His benefit was that he got to go out and play. His cost was that he lost his house. Do you think he would make a better decision now if he thought about his cost and benefit?
The second little pig built his house out of wood. His benefit was that he got a nice house and he got to go out and play a few extra days. His cost was that he lost his house. Do you think he would make a better decision now if he thought about his cost and benefit?

Conclusion:

We all like to go and play. This story teaches us that we need to make good decisions. We need to think about our costs and benefits. Good decision making requires that the students are able to think about the negatives and positives of the decision. This ability to analyze is a skill and it has to be introduced and practiced just like other skills!

Assessment Activity: