Trends Affecting Business

Overview

This 50-minute lesson is designed for Year 7 students studying Business as part of the Western Australian Curriculum. It focuses on exploring how current health, sustainability, and technology trends influence businesses and their product offerings. Lesson 22 of 30 in the unit Navigating Economics Together, it builds students' understanding of the economic environment and guides them in analysing real-world business adaptations and decisions.

Learning Objectives

• Identify and describe current health, sustainability, and technology trends affecting businesses.
• Explain the implications of these trends on businesses’ product offerings.
• Analyse potential costs and benefits for businesses adapting to these trends.
• Communicate their findings clearly using relevant economic and business terminology.

These objectives align closely with the Western Australian Curriculum content descriptions for Economics and Business Year 7, particularly:

• Develop a response to an economic and business issue, identifying potential costs and benefits (AC9HE7S04).
• Interpret information and data to identify economic and business issues, trends and economic cause-and-effect relationships (AC9HE7S03).
• Create descriptions and explanations using economic/business knowledge, concepts, and terms (AC9HE7S05) .

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Lesson Structure

1. Warm-up & Context Setting (10 minutes)

• Activity: Class brainstorm on what "trends" are currently influencing products they see or buy (e.g., fitness, environmental friendliness, smart devices).
• Teacher prompts: What do businesses do when people want healthier products? How might sustainability concerns change what products are offered? How does new technology affect what products or services appear?
• Purpose: Activate prior knowledge and introduce the lesson topic; connect to daily life and stimulate curiosity.

2. Mini-lecture & Discussion (10 minutes)

• Teacher Input: Short presentation describing three main trends: health and wellbeing, sustainability/environmental consciousness, and advances in technology.
  • Examples: Plant-based foods, biodegradable packaging, apps and wearables.
• Class Discussion: How might these trends influence what businesses create or sell? Which might create new opportunities or challenges?
• Use real-world Aussie business examples for relevance (e.g., local brands producing vegan snacks, companies using solar power, or apps for fitness tracking).
• Draw on Entrepreneurship concepts from AC9HE7K03 to discuss how entrepreneurs use opportunities like these in the market .

3. Group Exploration and Analysis (15 minutes)

• Group Task: Divide students into 5 groups, assigning each group one trend (health, sustainability, or technology).
• Each group investigates (using provided digital tools or handouts) how businesses have adapted product offerings for their assigned trend.
• Groups outline:
  • Examples of products changed or created
  • Benefits to business (e.g., appealing to customers, profits, innovation)
  • Possible costs or challenges (e.g., higher production costs, new regulations)
• Groups prepare a brief verbal summary with key points to share.

4. Group Presentations and Class Synthesis (10 minutes)

• Each group presents their findings (2 minutes each).
• Teacher facilitates class discussion to highlight cause-and-effect relationships and the balancing of costs and benefits in business decision-making (reinforcing AC9HE7S03 concepts).
• Emphasise how businesses adapt continuously in response to changing consumer demands and technological advancements.

5. Reflection and Exit Ticket (5 minutes)

• Individual students write a short response to the question:
  "Which trend do you think will have the biggest impact on businesses in the future, and why?"
• Collect responses as an informal assessment of understanding and encourage personalised thinking.

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Assessment

• Informal assessment through group presentations and class discussion contribution.
• Exit ticket reflection to gauge individual student understanding of lesson concepts.
• Use rubric aligned with Australian Curriculum standards for descriptions and explanations (AC9HE7S05) to grade clarity, use of terminology, and insight.

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Materials & Resources

• Digital device or printed handouts with case studies/examples of businesses using health, sustainability, and technology trends.
• Whiteboard or smartboard for brainstorming and note-taking.
• Template for group investigation to structure analysis (e.g., product, benefits, challenges).

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Differentiation and Engagement Strategies

• Provide scaffolding handouts with key terms and sentence starters for students needing extra support.
• Challenge advanced students to suggest potential new trends or technologies businesses should consider.
• Use multimedia (videos/images) showing product innovations relevant to kids’ interests.
• Encourage respectful listening and peer feedback during presentations to support social learning.

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Curriculum Alignment Summary

Curriculum Code	Description	Alignment to Lesson
AC9HE7S04	Develop a response to an economic/business issue, identifying costs/benefits	Evaluating trend impacts on product offerings
AC9HE7S03	Interpret info/data to identify economic/business issues & trends	Discussion of cause-and-effect of trends on business
AC9HE7S05	Create descriptions using economic/business concepts and terms	Group explanations & exit tickets using key terminology
AC9HE7K03	Characteristics of entrepreneurs and influence on success	Understanding entrepreneurial response to trends

This lesson ensures Year 7 students engage deeply with the effects of contemporary trends on business, directly reflecting Western Australian Curriculum intent whilst applying critical and creative thinking skills appropriate for their age.

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If you want, I can also prepare printable handouts or digital slide content to accompany this lesson!