The needs
This unit will teach the meaning of basic needs and also what responsible consumption involves.
- Setting the scene within the area
One of the topics in “The natural, social and cultural environment” is Responsible Consumption.
We live in a consumer society, which means that consuming has become a culture, that is, a way of seeing, understanding and explaining the world and, as such, a way of influencing people’s behaviour. We therefore have to be aware of this situation and encourage people to consume sensibly and responsibly, considering the social, economic and environmental effects of the act of consuming. To do so, we need to know what our basic needs are and what responsible consumption involves.
- Goals
- Differentiate between essential needs and those we can do without
- Encourage responsible consumer habits
- Explore other realities that are different to our own
- Content
- Responsible consumption
- Analysis and reflection using texts, data and images
- List of concepts
- Oral expression
- Waiting for your turn to talk
- Understanding and appreciating different realities
- Ability to put yourself in someone else’s shoes
- Basic competences studied
Processing information and honing digital skills
The information contained in the unit is presented in different formats: texts, images, videos, etc.Pupils will be required to undertake cognitive tasks, such as the following: relating information, analysing constructively, relaying it clearly and, finally, understanding it and adding it to their prior knowledge.
At the same time, the entire learning process throughout the unit requires making basic use of the computer, as well as of the internet. This allows developing digital skills and increasing familiarity with new technologies also in Compulsory Education.
Social competence and citizenship
This teaching unit contributes to social competence and citizenship in the following way:The point of departure is that we are all consumers, so this unit helps to raise awareness about our own personal responsibility when consuming goods and services.
The topic favours global coexistence, as on the one hand it highlights the differences between people and cultures, while on the other all peoples and cultures are considered equal in terms of their fundamental rights, as well as regarding their economic, social and cultural rights.
The unit helps pupils to understand their most immediate social environment (family, friends, etc.), as well as more distant ones, through emotions, feelings and relationships with other people, encouraging empathy and the understanding of other points of view and realities.
Exposing pupils to other social and cultural realities that are different to their own helps them to see consumerism in a different light.
Competence in the culture of science, technology and health
Pupils will analyse their consumer habits, reflecting upon and discussing the consequences of irresponsible consumer behaviour.Furthermore, attention will be paid to ways of thinking and behaving that favour ethical consumerism and promote solidarity.
Likewise, pupils will be encouraged to increase their awareness of the impact their consumer behaviour has not only on the quality of their own lives but also on their surrounding environment and other people.
Learning to learn
The teaching unit helps to develop this competence by calling on pupils to consider what they know about consumerism and needs, as well as to process and assimilate what they have learnt and apply it in a practical manner to their everyday lives and their immediate surroundings.Competence in language communication
The unit is organised in such a way that pupils will need to use both the written and the spoken language, systematically organising and presenting what they have learnt orally and/or in writing. This provides an opportunity to contribute to the development of a coherent discourse using reasoning to defend their personal points of view, while generating dialogues and debates based on respect and equality.What’s more, the unit is used to acquire and encourage the use of a specific vocabulary. (Exercise 1).
Competence in the culture of humanism and art
Exercises 3 and 4 will help pupils to understand what consumerism is like in other cultures, as well as the form that consumerism takes.Exercise 6 fosters creativity and design through the use of colours, shapes, composition, etc., besides boosting initiative, teamwork and decision-making.
Competence for personal initiative and independence
The aim of this unit is for pupils to reflect upon their consumer habits: what they consume, why they consume, and how they consume, and then make decisions that will lead them to consume in a responsible and rational manner.- Values studied
In addition, it encourages awareness and empathy towards other realities and fosters the value of ethical consumerism, as a respectful way of interacting with nature, as well as with other people and cultures.