What Money Is
What money is and why we use it; that money is exchanged for goods and services; brief history from barter to coins to digital payments
Teaching approaches
Gakuva’s recommended starting approach is selected. You can still compare every option.
1 approach
Barter swaps one good or service directly for another, but it fails when two people do not want what the other offers. Money works as an agreed way to exchange and store value. It can be represented by coins, notes, payment cards, or phone payments.
Spend 15 minutes comparing a difficult barter trade with a pretend shop purchase, then sort coins, notes, cards, and phone payments as forms used to pay.
Learning resources
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Explore the learning path
0 before · 6 after
Before
No prerequisite
This concept
Check understanding
- Explain that people use money to pay for things they need or want
- Give an example of how buying worked before money existed (swapping or bartering)
- Name at least two forms money can take (coins, notes, card, phone payment)
“If you asked your child why people use money instead of just swapping things, could they give you a sensible answer?”
Curriculum record
- Type
- Conceptual
- Subject
- Life Skills
- Domain
- Money & Finance
- Age range
- Ages 5–7