Financial Literacy Lesson Plan: Thanksgiving, Pilgrims, and Property Rights

The Chairman
Oct 3
3 min read

Course: High School Financial Literacy

Duration: 60–90 minutes

Theme: Incentives, Property Rights, and Economic Growth

Sunshine State Standards

SS.912.E.1.1 – Distinguish between private goods and services and public goods and services.
SS.912.FL.3.3 – Analyze the costs and benefits of government policies that affect markets.
SS.912.A.1.7 – Describe how historical events are subject to different interpretations.

Objectives

Students will be able to:

Define common property and private property.
Explain why the Pilgrims’ common property system failed.
Analyze how private property increased productivity and prosperity.
Apply the lesson of incentives to modern financial literacy and personal responsibility.

Vocabulary Words

Common Property – Land or resources shared by everyone, without exclusive ownership.
Private Property – Land or resources owned by an individual or family, with exclusive rights.
Incentive – A factor that motivates people to act or work harder.
Scarcity – Limited resources in relation to unlimited wants.
Prosperity – Economic success, abundance, and growth.
Free Rider – A person who benefits from resources without contributing fairly.
Productivity – The efficiency of producing goods and services.
Public Goods – Goods and services provided for all, often by the government (e.g., roads, defense).
Responsibility – Being accountable for one’s work, actions, or resources.
Opportunity Cost – The value of the next best alternative when making a decision.
The Tragedy of the Common - a situation where individuals acting in their own short-term self-interest deplete or degrade a shared, finite resource, leading to a negative outcome for everyone.

Lesson Outline

1. Hook / Warm-Up (10 minutes)

Discussion starter:“If your class grade was based on the average of everyone’s work, would you try harder or slack off?”
Transition to Pilgrims’ experience with shared vs. individual responsibility.

2. Historical Background (15 minutes)

Pilgrims in 1620 used common farming → shortages, resentment, hunger.
William Bradford’s journal records frustration and inefficiency.
In 1623, land divided → families worked their own plots → productivity soared → abundance led to first Thanksgiving.
Key principle: Incentives matter.
Link: This Thanksgiving, Say Thank You to "Private Property”

3. Guided Practice – Comparison Chart (15 minutes)

Feature	Common Property (1620–1622)	Private Property (1623+)
Who owns land/crops?	Everyone (communal)	Families (private)
Incentive to work	Low (free riders)	High (keep what you earn)
Outcome	Scarcity, hunger	Abundance, prosperity
Feelings	Frustrated, resentful	Motivated, responsible

4. Simulation – Farming Game (25 minutes)

Group A – Common Farm: Work goes into one basket; equal sharing regardless of effort.
Group B – Private Farm: Work and rewards kept individually.
Debrief: Which group worked harder? Why did results differ?

5. Class Discussion (15 minutes)

Why did common property fail?
How does private property create responsibility and growth?
What are modern “common property” issues (pollution, public restrooms, overfishing)?
How does this apply to saving, investing, and building wealth today?

6. Exit Ticket (5 minutes)

Students write:

1 reason the Pilgrims struggled under common property.
1 reason private property worked.
1 modern financial example showing importance of property rights.

Student Handout Packet

Part 1 – Bradford Excerpt (modernized)

“The experience of this common course… bred much confusion and discontent. The strong had no more share than the weak. This made men unwilling to work. So, every family was assigned their own parcel of land. This had good success, for it made all industrious, and much more corn was planted.”

Part 2 – Comparison Chart (students complete in pairs).

Part 3 – Reflection Questions: