Costs a Government Chooses is a free printable Grade 3 to Grade 5 social studies worksheet on comparing the benefits and costs of a public choice, aligned to Common Core standard D2.Eco.1.3-5. 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 pupils in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.

Set 13 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.

One paper per pupil

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

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

Costs a Government Chooses

D2.Eco.1.3-5

NameDate

Circle the best answer.

1.A country signs a five-year fixed-price supply deal. Cost?

A.It loses its ports
B.If prices fall it is locked into paying more than the market
C.Timber gets heavier

2.A country signs a five-year fixed-price supply deal. Benefit?

A.It gains territory
B.It gains a fleet
C.It knows the cost of timber for five years

3.A minister publishes figures that show a shortfall. Cost?

A.Radio time is expensive
B.Figures take long to add
C.The failure is on the record for opponents to use

4.A newspaper prints letters attacking the programme. Benefit to readers?

A.The paper is longer
B.Letters are free
C.They learn what people outside the official figures are experiencing

5.A council builds upward on cleared land. Cost?

A.Land runs out sooner
B.Waiting lists lengthen
C.Higher building costs more per home and changes the street entirely

6.The government builds through councils rather than firms. Cost?

A.It loses the timber
B.It loses whatever speed competing firms might have brought
C.It loses the land

7.A family waits seven years for a council home. What is the cost to them?

A.The rent they will pay
B.Seven years living in whatever they can get instead
C.The size of the home

8.A council builds upward on cleared land. Benefit?

A.Bricks are cheaper
B.More families housed from the same scarce sites
C.Lists get shorter by themselves

LessonPrint · D2.Eco.1.3-5 · Set 13 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Costs a Government Chooses

Set 13. Prints on its own sheet.

1.If prices fall it is locked into paying more than the market
2.It knows the cost of timber for five years
3.The failure is on the record for opponents to use
4.They learn what people outside the official figures are experiencing
5.Higher building costs more per home and changes the street entirely
6.It loses whatever speed competing firms might have brought
7.Seven years living in whatever they can get instead
8.More families housed from the same scarce sites

More practice for D2.Eco.1.3-5

Weigh up what a choice gains against what it costs.

Teaching this next? Costs a Government Chooses is the 55-minute plan for it, with the misconceptions to expect.

All Grade 3 to Grade 5 worksheets

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to D2.Eco.1.3-5 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.