Within every economy there are activities that are crucial to the economy as a whole. These activities are divided into four parts: Primary, Secondary, Tertiary, and Quaternary. This lesson will introduce you to all four types of activities.

Primary economic activities are tied to the resources of the earth. These activities occur where people live in close contact with the resources of the land. Primary economic activities produce basic food staples and raw materials for industry. Examples of primary economic activities are: agriculture, hunting, crop cultivation, forestry, mining, logging and fishing.

Watch the following video about an example of a primary economic activity. Watch carefully and answer the questions that follow.

Question: What raw material is being extracted from the earth as a primary economic activity in the video?

Check Your Answer

Coal is being extracted from the earth as the primary economic activity.

Secondary economic activities add value to the raw materials by changing their form (into products), and making them useful. Examples of secondary economic activities are: steel making from a combination of minerals, Milk production from pastoral farming, textile production from cotton farming, furniture production from logging. Manufacturing and processing industries are included in this phase of the production process.

Watch the following video to see an example of secondary economic activities at work:

Question: Furniture production is an example of a secondary economic activity. Name some of the activities involved in the production of the Rosewood furniture in the video.

Check Your Answer

shipping, carving, painting, staining

Tertiary economic activities are also referred to as the service sector. They consist of businesses and labor specialization that provide services to the general community. In many societies, tertiary economic activities include professionals such as teachers & professors, lawyers, medical officers, clerical and personnel services. Watch the following video and complete the activity that follows.

Tertiary Industry

In your notes, list at least five tertiary economic activities you encounter each day (hint: bus driver, teacher, etc.)

Quaternary economic activities are composed entirely of services rendered by white-collar professionals working in careers such as management and information processing. In many societites, these are the careers that require higher levels of education and a special set of skills.

Review Activity

Now that you have learned the four types of economic activities, let's review. Click on the following pictures and drag each one to the type of economic activity that it best fits.