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When Things Are Scarce is a free printable Grade 3 to Grade 5 social studies worksheet on how scarcity affects production and price, aligned to C3 Framework indicator D2.Eco.3.3-5. It prints 8 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions that each ask different questions, so no two students in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.

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Set 1 has all 25 in a single PDF. All 25 sets ask different questions.

When Things Are Scarce

D2.Eco.3.3-5

NameDate

Circle the best answer.

1.A frost ruins half the orange crop. What happens to the price of oranges?
  • A.It goes down
  • B.It stays the same
  • C.It goes up
2.A storm closes the roads into a town for a week. What becomes scarce in its stores?
  • A.The town's name
  • B.Fresh food brought in by truck
  • C.Sunshine
3.A bakery has only enough flour for 20 loaves. What must the baker decide?
  • A.Which loaves to make and who can buy them
  • B.How to make flour from water
  • C.How to close for a year
4.Why are diamonds expensive while tap water is cheap in most places?
  • A.Water is harder to find than diamonds
  • B.Diamonds are easy to dig up
  • C.Diamonds are scarce, while tap water is plentiful
5.Gasoline becomes scarce after a pipeline breaks. What might drivers do?
  • A.Fill up two cars each
  • B.Drive less and share rides
  • C.Drive more than before
6.A drought means farmers grow less wheat. What happens to bread prices?
  • A.They rise
  • B.They fall
  • C.Bread becomes free
7.Why do people sometimes stand in long lines when something is scarce?
  • A.Lines make things cheaper
  • B.There is not enough for everyone, so they hurry to get some
  • C.There is too much of it
8.A factory runs short of workers. What happens to how much it can make?
  • A.It makes more goods
  • B.It makes fewer goods
  • C.It makes exactly the same

LessonPrint · D2.Eco.3.3-5 · Set 25 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — When Things Are Scarce

Set 25. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.It goes up
  2. 2.Fresh food brought in by truck
  3. 3.Which loaves to make and who can buy them
  4. 4.Diamonds are scarce, while tap water is plentiful
  5. 5.Drive less and share rides
  6. 6.They rise
  7. 7.There is not enough for everyone, so they hurry to get some
  8. 8.It makes fewer goods

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to D2.Eco.3.3-5 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.