Course: Principles of Macroeconomics (ECON 2) · Silver Oak University (fictional sample) · Prof. Ashford
Focus: Aggregate Demand & Aggregate Supply · Objective 5 · SLO A & B

📋 Module Overview Page — "Start Here" (Canvas: Page, published)

Week 5 — Aggregate Demand & Aggregate Supply: The Model at the Heart of the Course

Four weeks in, you can measure an economy — GDP, the CPI, unemployment, growth. This week you get the model that explains why those numbers move together, quarter to quarter: the aggregate-demand–aggregate-supply (AD–AS) model. It's macro's single most-used diagram, and it's the one every later week (business cycles, fiscal policy, the Fed, the Phillips curve) builds directly on top of. Get this graph solid this week and the rest of the semester gets much easier.

The big question: Why does the aggregate-demand curve slope down, what's the difference between short-run and long-run aggregate supply, and how do we read off the new price level and real output when a curve shifts?

By the end of this week, you can:

• explain why AD slopes down — three distinct reasons (wealth, interest-rate, exchange-rate effects), none of which is the microeconomic "substitution effect" story;
• distinguish short-run aggregate supply (SRAS) from long-run aggregate supply (LRAS), and explain what each represents;
• solve an AD–AS system algebraically for the equilibrium price level and real output, and shift the correct curve in the correct direction to read off the new equilibrium;
• tell a demand-side story of a boom or bust from a supply-side story, evenhandedly.

Do this, in order:

1. Read & watch — the Week 5 resources (≈40 min). → Readings & Resources page
2. Lecture Tutorial — work through AD–AS with your AI tutor (≈45 min). Due Sun, Oct 4. → submit the chat share link + summary
3. Practice Exercises — 6 quick reps, ungraded (≈15 min).
4. Quiz 5 — 10 questions, closed to AI (≈20 min). Due Sun, Oct 4.
5. Discussion 5 — "What really drives booms and busts — spending, confidence, or supply shocks?" Initial post Fri, Oct 2, replies Sun, Oct 4.
6. Assignment 5 — the AD–AS comparative-statics problem set (100 pts). Due Sun, Oct 4.
7. Workshop 5 — "Shift the Right Curve" — solve the AD–AS anchor on Desmos, then work two qualitative shift scenarios (50 pts). Due Sun, Oct 4.

A note before you start: this is the week the two Gate-2 skills — which curve, which direction, what happens to P and Y — become load-bearing for the rest of the term. Every later week (recessions, fiscal policy, the Fed, inflation) is a variation on "something shifts a curve in this exact diagram." Slow down and nail the direction logic now. 💪

📣 Welcome Announcement (Canvas: Announcement; available_from_offset_days = 0 — posts Mon, Sep 28)

Subject: Week 5 — meet the model you'll use all semester 👋

Hi everyone,

Quick gut check: over the last month you've computed GDP, the CPI, unemployment, and a growth rate. Good — those are the economy's vital signs. This week we build the model that explains what makes those vital signs move: aggregate demand and aggregate supply (AD–AS).

This week, don't miss:

• Why AD slopes down — it's not the same reason a single product's demand curve slopes down. Three separate macro-level effects (wealth, interest-rate, exchange-rate) do the work here, and mixing this up with microeconomics is the #1 trap.
• SRAS vs. LRAS — one curve moves with sticky prices in the short run; the other reflects the economy's long-run potential. Keeping these straight matters for the rest of the semester.
• The habit that carries the whole term starting now: given a shifter (spending rises, an oil shock hits, confidence drops), name which curve moves, which direction, and what happens to P and Y. Get this reflex solid this week.

Start with the Module Overview ("Start Here"), then the readings, then your AI Lecture Tutorial. Bring your Workshop 5 Desmos graph (or a screenshot) to class if you can — we'll compare notes.

See you in class,
Prof. Ashford