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Saturday
Market by Patricia Grossman and Enrique O. Sanchez Summary:
Sellers from near and far arrive at the market before dawn
on Saturday. There are trucks, carts, and donkeys loaded with beautiful
rebozos, fiery chile peppers, comfortable huaraches, squawking parrots,
fine rugs, flowers, etc. The sellers work all day, hoping to sell
all their wares and drive away with empty trucks. Concept: Market Definition: A market exists whenever people buy and sell goods and services. Comprehension Questions: Why were there so many people at the Saturday market? (People came to buy and sell goods, hoping to make some good deals.) What is a price? (A price is the amount you pay to buy a good or service or the amount you receive when you sell a good or service.) In the story it does not explain how the prices of goods in the Saturday market were set. In the Saturday market, how do you think people set their prices? (Probably, by haggling between buyer and seller. Many prices are not marked clearly as in our stores.) What were the sellers/producers hoping for during market day? (They hoped to sell all their goods to buyers at high prices so the sellers could make a profit.) What were the buyers/consumers hoping for during market day? (Buyers were hoping to buy the goods they wanted at low prices.) Who were some of the sellers/producers and what goods did each sell? (The producers included Miguel, who brought sacks of chile peppers; Carmen, who had beautiful shawls for sale; Luis, who reluctantly had his fat and charming pig for sale; Rosa, with her huaraches; Pedro, with his fine rugs; Estela, with her flowers; Lucia, with her potions; Juan, with his bread and cookies; Ana, with her tortillas; Diego, with his parrots; and Enrique, with his clay figurines.) How did the producers estimate the amount of goods to be brought to the market for sale? (They considered the amount consumers bought during the previous week. For example, Miguel sold ten sacks of chile peppers last week. This week he brought more. Each week, Rosa managed to sell two hundred pairs of huaraches. This week she made another two hundred pairs of huaraches, just as usual.) Carmen sold
only two rebozos last week. What was the reason for her poor sales?
What advice would you give to Carmen? (Answers will vary. Carmen could sell her rebozos at a lower price. This will probably increase the quantity of rebozos she sells. She could try to change the design on her shawl so that her product appears to be different from the other sellers. She may also decide to change her product and start selling something else which may appeal more to her customers.) Other
Concepts: Goods
and Services, Producers,
Consumers, Supply
and Demand, Price.
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