The Economics for Everybody set by R.C. Sproul Jr. includes a two-disc CD and accompanying study guide book. The CD’s include 12 lessons ranging from 15-27 minutes in length. The Study Guide includes a message introduction, scriptures to read, learning objectives, and a lecture outline. There are also multiple choice and discussion questions for use after viewing the CD. It is suggested for further study to purchase one of the recommended books on Economics. I am using this with a high school student for a semester long course in Economics and chose to purchase a used copy of one of the recommended text books to go with it. Each lesson has the suggested reading for that text, making it very easy for me to assign it to my son.

There is an online scope and sequence of 19 pages that we chose to print out primarily for me the teacher as it has been awhile since I have done economics. It also included the answers to the study guide questions which was very helpful. The scope and sequence also offers an additional work section that is not in the study guide. The additional work requires some research and writing short papers. I believe that these components together work to present a semester long class for High School economics.

Lessons one through five focus on the key economic principles. Beginning with God, and His creating economics the study looks at stewardship. The next lesson takes in to account the entrance of sin into the world, and how that affects our relationships. It takes us through the law, liberty and government. Lesson four discussed wealth and I was blessed to see it from a Biblical perspective. Verses on covetousness and wealth backed up the principles. The law of supply and demand as well as trade and free market are discussed in lesson four. Lessons six and seven discusses varying world views and how philosophy, theology and economics are related. The last fourth of the study looks at specific economic situations such as depressions/recessions and how that impacts money. History of the Great Depression is included to show how more government involvement came to be. Economics for Everybody is a thorough, biblical approach to economics. This set costs $30.

There are several suggestions in the study guide for use of this program. You can use it for middle and high school students as an introductory class, or as a class for credit which we did. It also works for the family unit, or church small group to learn together. I chose to use this for my 17-year-old senior, in organizing a ½ credit on Economics. Watching the CD, answering the study guide and additional work in the scope and sequence, and reading the additional text gave him a complete program on Biblical Economics. I had wanted to use it with my 14 year old as well, but I couldn’t get their schedules to mesh to work on it together. I do plan on my 14-year-old going through this program when he is a junior. I enjoyed that this program is geared for the Christian homeschool student and I didn’t have to make any changes to it to fit our needs. The CD portion was a great way to start, and to keep the learning of economics lively. The CD was well done in teaching, but was also was entertaining. R.C. Sproul Jr. presents the lesson on the CD and includes film clips from Charlie Chapman, film footage from historic time and places, and current information. This style of CD is very helpful to the visual learner. Seeing the clips as R.C. Sproul Jr. speaks, gives them a memory tool for the principles that he is discussing. We chose to use the study guide verbally which is also helpful for the auditory learner. My son isn’t taught well by given a text book and told to go to it. He does much better hearing, and seeing the concepts explained. R.C. Sproul Jr. is an energetic teacher who has a passion for economics and that comes through in his teaching. It is taught on an understandable level that I believe middle school students would benefit from as well.

We chose to do one lesson per week, watching the CD on Monday afternoon. This gave my son all week to read the additional text and any of the additional work I assigned him. His projects were due on Friday of the same week. I felt that there was a good balance of information for a semester class, and it never felt bogged down. I loved how my 17-year-old first experience with economics could be from a Biblical worldview. He did find some of the film clips to be ‘old fashioned’, which they were. Economics though needs to cover history as well for it to be complete. This program is well worth the price and I would most certainly purchase it for our homeschool curriculum library.

-Product review by Melanie Schemanski, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC, January, 2017