A very important subject, one which I think gets short shrift in modern curricula, and one which is increasingly important, is basic economics. Many people roll their glazed eyes at the thought of subjecting themselves (or their kids) to some boring economics lecture or book.
If you are younger than I (and many are) you may not know of Free to Choose, a wonderful book by Nobel Prize winning economist Milton Friedman. Dr. Friedman helps explain in clear language what markets are and how interactions between the players in markets affects all that we do.
Even better than the book is the PBS series that the book spawned. Better in that Dr. Friedman relays in a short video the basic principles of a chapter of his book, not by lecturing, but by traveling the world and demonstrating examples of those principles. Then the action shifts to a university setting, where an audience watches Dr. Friedman debate the merits of his arguments with a variety of opposing views. My wife and I used to watch this as often as possible when it first appeared in 1980.
I was thrilled to learn that The Idea Channel has the DVD set available for purchase, and also has streaming video of each segment on line at no charge! Please, take the time to view one or two if you haven't already seen this tremendous series. It is well worth the time, and is an easy way to impart basic economic principles to your students.
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