20602_AC_Economics_and_buisness_Year_6_Making_choices_about_resources

Resource decisions – 3
Find a small group to work with. Discuss each scenario about spending or using resources. Write your
ideas about each scenario, considering priorities, opportunity cost and already available resources. Try
to come up with a solution for each one.
• A primary school choir has entered a contest. The contest is being held two hours away from the
school. The school cannot afford to hire a bus and the principal needs to decide whether the
students should catch a train with the music teacher (the train station is within walking distance of
both locations) or whether he should ask the parents of choir members to drive students to the
contest. Any parent would have to pay the cost of driving to the contest location. However, the
train fare would require a small cost to the choir members. The students would also need to stay
longer than they need to at the contest as the trains don’t run regularly. If you were the principal,
would what you do?
• A new rock band is excited to have been asked to play their first gig
at a restaurant. While their instruments are quite good, they feel that
they would have a better sound with an electric guitar—and these are
expensive to buy new. They also would like new sound equipment.
Although this is not necessary for the small restaurant, it would be
useful to have if they are asked to play gigs at bigger venues in the
future. They cannot afford to buy both a new electric guitar and the
new sound equipment. If you were in the band, what would you do?
• A local council has received several complaints from residents about the lack of a footpath and
a crosswalk on the main road in town. The residents believe it is dangerous for pedestrians,
particularly the many schoolchildren who use it every day. They tell the council that it is an
accident waiting to happen. The council are unsure what to do. It had just decided to spend the
money it would need to create a footpath on fixing the road itself, which has several potholes and
is annoying for motorists. There will be no more money available for six months. What should the
council do?
R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricpublications.com.au Australian Curriculum Economics and business (Year 6) 13