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 19 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 council builds upward on cleared land. Cost?

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

2.A minister publishes figures that show a shortfall. Benefit?

A.Bricks arrive faster
B.The public can judge progress rather than take his word
C.More homes get built

3.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

4.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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

LessonPrint · D2.Eco.1.3-5 · Set 19 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Costs a Government Chooses

Set 19. Prints on its own sheet.

1.Higher building costs more per home and changes the street entirely
2.The public can judge progress rather than take his word
3.They learn what people outside the official figures are experiencing
4.Seven years living in whatever they can get instead
5.If prices fall it is locked into paying more than the market
6.It knows the cost of timber for five years
7.It loses whatever speed competing firms might have brought
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.