I’m a thrifting enthusiast! Always have been, always will be! To me, it’s the thrill of the hunt; finding the next treasure. Not everyone looks at thrifting the way I do
and that’s okay. However, thrifting does seem to be in style now and it tells you something when the thrift store parking lots have more cars than the regular department stores do. So, why not see where your students stand with this Thrifting: Love it or Hate it? lesson.
Set
- Ask students to define the following: What is thrifting? What kinds of things can be thrifted? Thrifting is basically buying something preowned or secondhand. It can be anything–clothes, shoes, furniture, home decor, appliances, toys, sports equipment, textiles, etc.
- Do we have thrift stores or secondhand shops in our area or within 30 miles? If so, name them creating a list on the board.
- To see the extent of thrifting experiences among your students, play “Put a Finger Down” using any or all of the following prompts:
- 1. Put a finger down if you’ve ever found something amazing at a thrift store.
2. Put a finger down if you’ve thrifted clothes that became your favorite outfit.
3. Put a finger down if you’ve gone thrifting with friends just for fun.
4. Put a finger down if you’ve ever thrifted something and upcycled or DIY-ed it.
5. Put a finger down if you’ve bought something thrifted and didn’t tell anyone it was secondhand.
6. Put a finger down if you’ve ever donated clothes or items to a thrift store.
7. Put a finger down if you’ve thrifted something for a school project or costume.
8. Put a finger down if you’ve ever found a brand-name item for under $10.
9. Put a finger down if you’ve thrifted furniture or home décor.
10. Put a finger down if you thrift because it’s better for the environment.
11. Put a finger down if you’ve ever regretted not buying something you saw at a thrift store.
12. Put a finger down if you’ve ever bought something thrifted and later realized it was worth a lot.
13. Put a finger down if you’ve ever felt judged for wearing something secondhand.
14. Put a finger down if you’ve thrifted something and gifted it to someone.
15. Put a finger down if you think thrifting should be part of everyone’s shopping habits. - Ask students the following: Do you think thrifting is a trend or here to stay? Why?
Materials
- iPad or Laptop
- Projector & Screen
Activities
- Let’s explore why there is a boom in thrifting. View the PBS clip titled, “What’s behind a thrifting boom among American shoppers” and complete the assigned prompts.
- As with anything, there are pros and cons associated with thrifting. With your neighbor, brainstorm, off the top of your head, at least 3 pros and 3 cons of thrifting and be prepared to share. How many pros and cons you actually get will depend on your students. The next activity will give a more extensive list of pros and cons for them to consider.
- Have students complete the Digital Drag & Drop activity to sort all of the statements about thrifting into PROS and CONS. These will act as their notes. Note: In order to drag and drop the boxes, students must be in the non-present mode on Google Slides.
- Thrifting has been around for a long time. Let’s explore how attitudes and pratices of thrifting over the generations compare.
- Go over the Generations of Thrifting Interviews that students will conduct to be sure they understand all of the prompts. If time permits, you can have students pair up to begin their interview with a classmate/peer from their own generation. For the other generations, they can conduct the interviews with a parent and grandparent or with individuals who fall into the same generation such as teachers, family friends, aunts/uncles, etc.
- Once the multi-generational interviews are done, have students compare and contrast their results, using the Thrifting Analysis Prompts.
- If time permits, after grading, have students share their results as a class and get a class consensus on whether they think thrifting is a smart choice for individuals and families and their reasons.
Attachments
- Put a Finger Down Prompts (PDF)
- PBS Video Prompts (PDF)
- PBS Video Transcript (PDF)
- Thrifting Pros & Cons Drag & Drop
- Generations of Thrifting Interviews & Analysis (PDF)
Photo by James Collington
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