This business education journal contains two articles and three class activities related to teaching business skills relevant to today's economy. The first article, "Skills for a Changing Economy," provides an overview of the skills needed in today's business environment. According to the article, as many as half of recent high school graduates leave school without the skills they need to succeed in the work force or in higher education, not because education is becoming less effective but because the knowledge required grows much more quickly than high school curricula can be updated. The article says that skills needed in today's business climate include soft skills (communication and team work), hard skills (basic mathematical and economic understanding, personal finance, reading, and reasoning), and technology skills (using the appropriate technology to carry out such basic tasks as word processing). The second article, "Teaching Business Basics," suggests cooperative activities and school-to-work programs that teachers can use to help students learn the skills they need to succeed in the business world. Ideas are presented for teaching communication and soft skills; technology skills; budgeting, credit, and computation; and international business skills. Three learning activities focus on hiring, budgeting and saving, and preparing to do business in Japan. (KC)