Teachers’ Guide

Introduction

Welcome to the Teachers’ Guide for Pursuit! On the trail of economic growth, an interactive learning game from the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. This guide provides:

• general background information and pre-game prep materials,
• correlation of content to specific educational standards,
• tips and suggestions for maximizing student learning,
• a ready-made lesson plan for incorporating the game into your economics/financial literacy curriculum, and
• links to additional resources on game-related topics for extended study.

A glossary of Terms & Definitions is provided separately.

Created with both teachers and students in mind, Pursuit! helps players understand the basics of economic growth—what factors cause growth to occur; how productivity growth raises living standards; and how individuals, simply through the effects of their decision-making, contribute to the economy's overall expansion.

Students of all ages absorb information better and retain it longer when they are interested in the topic or engaged in the learning process. Thus, in a shameless appeal to our youthful audience (kids 12 to 100), we've disguised our lessons on economic growth in the form of a fun, search-style game—complete with animated characters, funny sound effects, and a pinch of humor now and then for good measure.

Ultimately, we value your comments and opinions about Pursuit!, and we use these both to help us gauge its effectiveness and to guide us in designing future educational products. Teachers are encouraged to use the forms in the Questions, Comments & Ideas section to share your thoughts about the game, as well as your creative suggestions for teaching with Pursuit! We also request that teachers ask students to complete the brief, online feedback form provided at the end of each trail.

We think teachers will enjoy using Pursuit! in the classroom. And we hope Pursuit!'s carefully crafted recipe for "edutainment" will whet students' appetite for economic growth, make the lesson palatable, and help it stick to their ribs like hot "chowda" on a cold New England day!