Effects on People Not in the Deal
A 45-minute Grade 3 lesson on costs and benefits that land on people who were never part of the exchange.
Effects on People Not in the Deal is a free 45-minute Grade 3 to Grade 5 social studies lesson plan for Common Core standard D2.Eco.8.3-5 — give examples where a choice affects people who were not part of it. It is timed across 5 sections, gives the exact wording to use where the wording carries the mathematics, names 3 misconceptions with the teaching move that addresses each, and ends with an exit ticket and a printable worksheet with its answer key.
- Grade:
- Grade 3 to Grade 5
- Length:
- 45 minutes
- Standard:
- D2.Eco.8.3-5
Grade 3 to Grade 5 · Economics
D2.Eco.8.3-5
Identify examples of external benefits and costs.
Objective
Students will be able to identify an effect that falls on somebody outside the deal, and say whether it is a cost or a benefit.
Students are successful when they can
- Names who is outside the deal.
- Says whether the effect on them is a cost or a benefit.
- Distinguishes it from a cost the buyer paid.
What you need
- The newspaper report, including the noise and smoke line
- Twelve effect cards
- The printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan
The lesson
Warm-up — who signed nothing
5 min- A passenger buys a ticket. Ask who else the journey affects.
- Collect names before sorting them.
Teach — inside and outside the deal
15 min- Draw a circle: passenger and company inside, everybody else outside.
- Put smoke on a field outside the circle. A cost, paid by a farmer who bought nothing.
- Put a station lamp lighting the lane outside the circle. A benefit, to people who never travel.
- Contrast with the fare: a cost, but the passenger agreed to it. Inside the circle.
- Say the test: did this person agree to any of it?
- Read the newspaper's noise and smoke line and ask who is speaking there.
“Did this person have any say in the deal at all?”
Guided practice — sort twelve
13 min- Pairs sort twelve effect cards into external cost and external benefit.
- They set aside any effect that is inside the circle.
- Groups defend one card they nearly placed wrongly.
Independent practice
9 min- Students complete the 'Effects on People Not in the Deal' page.
- Check the person affected is genuinely outside the exchange.
Close
3 min- Name one external effect of something the school does.
What goes wrong, and why
Each of these is a reasoning error rather than carelessness. The fix addresses the reasoning.
Calls the fare an external cost.
Why: It is money leaving somebody.
Fix: The passenger agreed to it. External means falling on somebody who did not.
Thinks external effects are always bad.
Why: The word cost is the memorable half.
Fix: Next-day post for everybody is external too, and it is a benefit.
Cannot name who is affected.
Why: The effect is described without a person.
Fix: Insist on a name: the farmer beside the line, the villager on the lane.
If they are not there yet
- Six cards, three of each kind.
- Give the person and ask whether the effect helps or harms them.
If they finish early
- Find an external effect that is a cost to one person and a benefit to another.
- Say what a company should do about an external cost.
- Name an external effect of the canal, not the railway.
Exit ticket
Smoke from the engines falls on a farmer's field. Why is that an external cost and not a normal one?
What to look for: The farmer never agreed to any part of the deal. Answers about the smoke being unpleasant miss the agreement test.
Printable practice for D2.Eco.8.3-5
Free to print and copy, answer key included. Each sheet can generate a fresh set of problems for a retake.
- Effects on People Not in the DealSort each effect into cost or benefit.
Questions about Effects on People Not in the Deal
How long does the Effects on People Not in the Deal lesson take?
45 minutes, split across 5 timed sections: warm-up 5 min, teach 15 min, guided practice 13 min, independent practice 9 min, close 3 min. The minutes are stated per section and add up to the stated length, so the plan can be cut or extended at a section boundary rather than abandoned halfway.
Which standard does Effects on People Not in the Deal teach?
D2.Eco.8.3-5 — D2.Eco.8.3-5, Economics for Grade 3 to Grade 5: “Identify examples of external benefits and costs.” In plain terms, give examples where a choice affects people who were not part of it.
What do I need to teach this lesson?
The newspaper report, including the noise and smoke line, twelve effect cards and the printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan. Everything listed is either ordinary classroom equipment or a free printable from this site — there is nothing to buy and nothing to prepare beyond photocopying.
What mistakes should I expect in this lesson?
Three, each a reasoning error rather than carelessness: calls the fare an external cost; thinks external effects are always bad and cannot name who is affected. The plan gives the thinking behind each one and the teaching move that addresses the thinking rather than the symptom.
How do I know whether the lesson worked?
The exit ticket asks: “Smoke from the engines falls on a farmer's field. Why is that an external cost and not a normal one?.” The farmer never agreed to any part of the deal. Answers about the smoke being unpleasant miss the agreement test. That tells you whether the class needs a reteach or a thirty-second conversation before you plan tomorrow.
Is there a worksheet to go with Effects on People Not in the Deal?
Yes — 1 printable D2.Eco.8.3-5 worksheet, linked at the end of the plan and free like the rest of the site. Each one comes with an answer key and 25 versions, so the practice after the lesson can be a different paper on every desk.
Is Effects on People Not in the Deal free to use?
Yes. The plan, its printables and their answer keys are free to read, print and photocopy for your own class, with no account and no email capture. It was last reviewed on 7 September 2026. Please do not resell it or republish it as your own.
Last reviewed 2026-09-07. Aligned to D2.Eco.8.3-5 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.