An award winning project for teaching economics at the fifth-grade level is described. Content is based on the theme of the economic repercussions of petty crime. As an initial activity, students examine the economic effects of local vandalism on the community and the taxpayers. Throughout the year, rap sessions provide a vehicle for class discussions of how small crimes relate to the concepts of scarcity, resources, economic sectors of society, goods and services, economic interdependence, and economic decision making. A variety of miniprojects incorporated into the curriculum examine specific economic concepts in greater depth. For example, students develop an economic problem-solving model, listen to guest speakers from business, study the economics of the Christmas season, and implement a community-wide clean-up campaign. A midyear incident of school vandalism is integrated into the study, serving as a basis for student created skits on crime prevention. These skits are then filmed and included as part of a culminating program presented to parents and community at year's end. Development of personal scrapbooks of the year long unit, pre- and posttests, and student observations provide a means of unit evaluation. This paper concludes with a bibliography of print and nonprint economics materials, and newspaper reviews of the class unit. (LP)