Summary:
Trisha loves school until her inability in reading makes her feel dumb. Luckily, in the fifth grade, her teacher, Mr. Falker, uses his specialized skills to help her learn to read and overcome her problem.

Concept: Specialization

Definition: People specialize when they produce only some of the goods and services they consume, then trade with others to get more of the things they want.

Comprehension Questions:

Describe Trisha's problem. (She does not know how to read and, as a result, she feels dumb and does not like school.)

Describe Mr. Falker's occupation and the service he provided. (He was a fifth grade teacher. He provided the service of helping students learn.)

Explain how the specialized services of Mr. Falker helped Trisha solve her problem.
(He used his knowledge to first recognize her difficulty "seeing" letters and numbers. Then he used his own skills and the skills of a special reading teacher to help her learn to read.)

Describe the specialization of Miss Plessy. (She was a special reading teacher. She used different methods, such as using sand and blocks, to help Trisha and other students recognize letters, words, sentences, and paragraphs. She learned about these methods from specific training and from experiences in her job.)

Identify the specialized occupation of Trisha when she grew up.
(She became an author and illustrator of children's books.)

Other Concepts: Goods and Services, Interdependence

(From KidsEcon Posters©: www.kidseconposters.com)