Activity 01
Data Analysis: Testing Supply-Side Claims
Provide students with economic data from 1979 to 1989: GDP growth, unemployment, inflation, federal revenue, national debt, income distribution (top 20% vs. bottom 20%), and manufacturing employment. Students test specific supply-side claims against the data. Did tax cuts increase revenue? Did growth benefit all income levels? Groups present their findings with evidence.
Analyze the core principles of 'Reaganomics' (supply-side economics) and its intended effects.
Facilitation TipFor the Data Analysis activity, provide students with a spreadsheet that includes projected revenue under static scoring versus actual revenue, so they can calculate the gap between theory and reality.
What to look forPresent students with a short list of economic policies from the 1980s (e.g., top marginal tax rate reduction, increased defense spending, deregulation of savings and loans). Ask them to identify which policies are associated with Reaganomics and briefly explain the intended effect of one policy.
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Activity 02
Formal Debate: Reaganomics - Success or Failure?
Assign students to argue from three positions: supply-side advocates (pointing to GDP growth, lower inflation, job creation), progressive critics (pointing to rising inequality, tripled national debt, cuts to social programs), and moderates evaluating trade-offs. Each side uses data from the previous activity. A student panel judges which arguments are best supported by evidence.
Explain how the 'New Right' reshaped the Republican Party and American conservatism.
Facilitation TipDuring the Structured Debate, assign roles explicitly—one student should argue that Reaganomics succeeded in spurring growth, while another must argue that it worsened inequality, using specific policy examples.
What to look forFacilitate a class discussion using the prompt: 'Considering the diverse groups within the New Right, which segment do you believe had the most significant impact on shaping Reagan's domestic agenda, and why?' Encourage students to cite specific examples of policy outcomes.
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Activity 03
Mapping the New Right Coalition
Give each group one component of the New Right coalition: evangelical Christians, anti-tax activists, Cold War hawks, business deregulators, or social conservatives. Groups research their faction's key concerns, leaders, and organizations using provided sources. The class then maps the overlaps and tensions between these groups on a shared diagram, discussing what held the coalition together.
Evaluate the economic and social impact of Reagan's policies on different segments of society.
Facilitation TipIn the Mapping the New Right Coalition activity, have students use color-coded arrows to connect events like the 1964 Goldwater campaign to the 1980 Reagan coalition to visualize political continuity.
What to look forAsk students to write two sentences explaining the core argument of supply-side economics and one sentence evaluating its success in achieving its stated goals during the Reagan administration.
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Activity 04
Think-Pair-Share: The Laffer Curve
Draw the Laffer Curve on the board and explain its logic: at 0% tax rate, revenue is zero; at 100%, revenue is also zero (no one works); somewhere in between is the revenue-maximizing rate. Students discuss with a partner: What assumptions does this model make? Where was the U.S. on the curve in 1980? How would you test this theory? Share responses and discuss the gap between theory and evidence.
Analyze the core principles of 'Reaganomics' (supply-side economics) and its intended effects.
Facilitation TipFor the Think-Pair-Share on the Laffer Curve, ask students to sketch the curve on paper, label the revenue-maximizing point, and then discuss real-world examples where tax cuts led to either increased or decreased revenue.
What to look forPresent students with a short list of economic policies from the 1980s (e.g., top marginal tax rate reduction, increased defense spending, deregulation of savings and loans). Ask them to identify which policies are associated with Reaganomics and briefly explain the intended effect of one policy.
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Generate Complete Lesson→A few notes on teaching this unit
Experienced teachers avoid presenting Reaganomics as a monolithic policy success or failure. Instead, they treat it as a case study in unintended consequences, where students analyze trade-offs between economic growth, debt, and inequality. Effective teaching relies on primary sources, such as Reagan’s 1981 speeches and the Economic Recovery Tax Act text, to ground abstract concepts in concrete language. Research suggests that students retain these lessons better when they debate the ethics of policy choices, not just the economics.
By the end of these activities, students should be able to explain Reaganomics as a multi-part program, not just tax cuts, and evaluate its success using evidence from policy documents and economic data. They should also trace how the New Right coalition formed over decades, not overnight.
Watch Out for These Misconceptions
During the Data Analysis activity, watch for students who claim Reaganomics worked because revenue increased in nominal terms.
Use the activity’s revenue projections table to redirect them: have students subtract the combined effects of tax cuts and military spending from the nominal revenue increase to calculate the actual deficit impact.
During the Structured Debate, listen for oversimplified arguments that Reaganomics succeeded because the economy grew.
In the debate prep, require students to cite specific data points, such as GDP growth versus debt-to-GDP ratio, to ground their claims in evidence rather than rhetoric.
During the Mapping the New Right Coalition activity, some students may claim Reagan’s election started the conservative movement.
Have students revisit the timeline in the activity packet, adding arrows to connect earlier movements like Nixon’s Southern Strategy to the 1980 coalition, highlighting continuity over sudden change.
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