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The Classroom Economy: Teaching Fourth Graders About Inflation

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By Lauren Almond

At the school in Philadelphia where I teach, we have a very robust classroom economy. My students are required to pay “rent” on their chairs, which is due on the first Friday of the month.

Unfortunately, I have some bad news for my fourth-grade students: thanks to inflation, which is causing prices to skyrocket across the country, their rent is about to increase from $5 to $7 a month. It seems only fair, since across the U.S., the average rent is up 12.3% over February 2020.

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Lauren Almond is a fourth-grade teacher at Perelman Jewish Day School.

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Lauren Almond
Lauren Almond
Lauren Almond is a fourth-grade teacher at Perelman Jewish Day School.

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