Grade 5 Textbooks
Mathematics
Title: Progress in Mathematics – Grade 5
Publication: 2006, Sadlier-Oxford, a Division of William H. Sadlier, Inc.
ISBN #: 0-8215-8215-1
Assessment Rating: 3-Fair
Assessment:
Because economic concepts are closely tied to mathematics, we decided to review a sampling of math books in this project. Obviously basic operations of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division are required; however, I was most interested in
All of these areas were covered quite well in the textbook. In Chapter 7, titled Probability and Statistics, there are a total of twelve lessons addressing probability, interdependent/dependent events, collecting and organizing data, graphing sense, line plots, histograms, circle graphs, and problem-solving strategies. In Chapter 8, titled Decimals: Addition and Subtraction, and Chapter 9, Decimals: Multiplication and Division, word problems using money are used throughout the chapters. Finally, in Chapter 13 there are five lessons on using percentage. I would have liked to see more word problems in the book focusing on budgeting, currencies, and income but they were limited. Overall, the textbook is adequate for mathematics but a teacher will need find additional resources to explain the mathematical concepts of the NC SCOS Social Studies economic goal (e.g., effects of interdependence).
Because economic concepts are closely tied to mathematics, we decided to review a sampling of math books in this project. Obviously basic operations of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division are required; however, I was most interested in
- The concept of decimals (as relate to money),
- Percentages (as related to resource availability and utilization), and
- Statistics and probability (as they relate to graphs of all kinds).
All of these areas were covered quite well in the textbook. In Chapter 7, titled Probability and Statistics, there are a total of twelve lessons addressing probability, interdependent/dependent events, collecting and organizing data, graphing sense, line plots, histograms, circle graphs, and problem-solving strategies. In Chapter 8, titled Decimals: Addition and Subtraction, and Chapter 9, Decimals: Multiplication and Division, word problems using money are used throughout the chapters. Finally, in Chapter 13 there are five lessons on using percentage. I would have liked to see more word problems in the book focusing on budgeting, currencies, and income but they were limited. Overall, the textbook is adequate for mathematics but a teacher will need find additional resources to explain the mathematical concepts of the NC SCOS Social Studies economic goal (e.g., effects of interdependence).
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Social Studies
Title: Social Studies – United States and Its Neighbors
Publication: 2009, Houghton Mifflin Company
ISBN #: 0-618-90622-3
Applicable NC SCOS Goal for Economics:
Social Studies Competency Goal 5: the learner will evaluate ways the United
States and other countries of North America make decisions about the
allocation and use of economic resources.
Assessment Rating: 3-Fair
Assessment:
Social Studies under the North Carolina Standard Course of Study (NC SCOS) for the fifth grade focus on the United States and our neighboring North American countries. Specifically, a number of economic concepts and principles are addressed including:
This textbook addresses the above areas in a number of chapters but the majority of the information can be found in Chapter 2 titled Resources and Economy which contains three recommended lessons (Resources of North America, The Economies of North America, and Specialization and Trade) estimated to be 20-30 minutes each. The chapter is a total of twenty-three (23) pages in length and is purported to address all of the objectives of NC SCOS Social Studies competency goal 6. Most of the topics above are indeed covered however in a superficial manner. The focus is on key vocabulary words (e.g., opportunity cost, conservation, capital resource, human resource) and not a lot beyond the definition and possibly a picture or map are provided. I could also not find very much in the application area to reinforce the concepts defined. However, it does try to integrate with the technology curriculum through a skill-builder activity focused on creating databases. This publisher provides a number of electronic products (e.g., eBooks, interactive games) and other resources which should definitely be used to supplement this somewhat limited textbook if a teacher wants to adequately cover the competency goal.
Social Studies under the North Carolina Standard Course of Study (NC SCOS) for the fifth grade focus on the United States and our neighboring North American countries. Specifically, a number of economic concepts and principles are addressed including:
- Types resources (human, natural, capital)
- Effects of unequal distribution of natural resources
- Economic institutions
- Interdependence between the United States and our neighbors
- Different economic systems (traditional, command, and market-developed)
- Specialization
- The production-consumption cycle
- Surplus and scarcity in America and its economic effects
This textbook addresses the above areas in a number of chapters but the majority of the information can be found in Chapter 2 titled Resources and Economy which contains three recommended lessons (Resources of North America, The Economies of North America, and Specialization and Trade) estimated to be 20-30 minutes each. The chapter is a total of twenty-three (23) pages in length and is purported to address all of the objectives of NC SCOS Social Studies competency goal 6. Most of the topics above are indeed covered however in a superficial manner. The focus is on key vocabulary words (e.g., opportunity cost, conservation, capital resource, human resource) and not a lot beyond the definition and possibly a picture or map are provided. I could also not find very much in the application area to reinforce the concepts defined. However, it does try to integrate with the technology curriculum through a skill-builder activity focused on creating databases. This publisher provides a number of electronic products (e.g., eBooks, interactive games) and other resources which should definitely be used to supplement this somewhat limited textbook if a teacher wants to adequately cover the competency goal.
Title: Social Studies – The United States, Canada, Mexico and Central America
Publication: 2009, Harcourt, Inc.
ISBN #: 0-15-356646-2
Applicable NC SCOS Goal for Economics:
Social Studies Competency Goal 5: the learner will evaluate ways the United
States and other countries of North America make decisions about the allocation
and use of economic resources.
Assessment Rating: 4-Good
Assessment:
Similar to the Houghton Mifflin Social Studies textbook, the Harcourt text covers all of the NC SCOS objectives for competency goal 5 in a single unit titled Economic Neighbors. However, the unit is broken down into five (5) lessons which they recommend to take nineteen (19) days to cover. The lessons include: Economic Resources, Interdependence, Economic Systems, Specialization and Interdependence, and Economic Activities. The total number of pages dedicated to the area of economics is thirty-three (33). This is better than the Houghton Mifflin text but still insufficient to address all the objectives under competency goal 5 appropriately. However, this textbook does an excellent job of having practice activities for the students after every new concept is introduced, for example, “Identify a worker in your community who specializes in a job. Write a letter to the editor of a newspaper explaining what is good and bad about specialization.” This textbook also integrates mathematics into the lessons in the area of graphing skills (pie charts and line graphs). While not a standalone resources, this textbook would be a reasonable start to addressing economics in grade 5. It should be used in conjunction with other resources provided by the publisher including activity books, eBooks, interactive games, etc.
Similar to the Houghton Mifflin Social Studies textbook, the Harcourt text covers all of the NC SCOS objectives for competency goal 5 in a single unit titled Economic Neighbors. However, the unit is broken down into five (5) lessons which they recommend to take nineteen (19) days to cover. The lessons include: Economic Resources, Interdependence, Economic Systems, Specialization and Interdependence, and Economic Activities. The total number of pages dedicated to the area of economics is thirty-three (33). This is better than the Houghton Mifflin text but still insufficient to address all the objectives under competency goal 5 appropriately. However, this textbook does an excellent job of having practice activities for the students after every new concept is introduced, for example, “Identify a worker in your community who specializes in a job. Write a letter to the editor of a newspaper explaining what is good and bad about specialization.” This textbook also integrates mathematics into the lessons in the area of graphing skills (pie charts and line graphs). While not a standalone resources, this textbook would be a reasonable start to addressing economics in grade 5. It should be used in conjunction with other resources provided by the publisher including activity books, eBooks, interactive games, etc.
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