Goods and Services - There are two types of products, goods and services. A good is a thing that you can purchase, like food, books, or toys. A service is something that one person does for another. Serving someone food or cutting someone's hair are services.
Buyers and Sellers - There are two types of people in an economy. These are buyers and sellers. A buyer is a person who wants to buy a good or service. A seller is a person who wants to sell a good or service to someone else. Buyers and sellers work together in an economy to get the things that they need and want. Here's a short video about Buyers and Sellers and Goods and Services. In the video, they call Buyers "Consumers" and they call Sellers "Producers":
Needs and Wants - There are two types of goods and services. Those that you need and those that you want. Needs are things that you absolutely cannot live without. There are very few things you cannot live without. These include food, water, shelter, and clothing. Anything that you do not need is considered a want. It is something that you want to have, but do not need to have in order to survive.
Goods Available in Your Country - Some goods are already available in your country. You can just go to the store and purchase them. These goods can be made with the materials available in your country. Any service can be made available in your country, as long as there is someone who knows how to do it or can learn to do it. Here’s a short video about resources and choices:
Goods Not Available in Your Country - Sometimes, the things that you want or need are not available in your country. When a good or service is not available, we say that it is scarce. Scarce means that there is very little, or even none, of something. In that case, you have two choices. You can make the things that you want or need out of materials you have, or you can trade something you have to another country for the thing that you want or need. Here’s a short video about scarcity and choice:
Countries That Make the Unavailable Goods - In order to trade for the things you want or need, you have to find countries that have those things.
Trade - Trade is when you give something that you have to someone else and they give you something they have. In a trade, each person gives a good or service that they have. There is no money involved in a trade. Another word for trade is barter. Here's a short video about barter and how it is different from money:
Forms of Money - Countries use different forms of money. Money is bills and coins that people use to purchase the things they need and want. People use money because it is small and easy to carry. Money can also be divided into smaller amounts quite easily. Money also lasts a long time. Finally, it is easy to recognize money. When you see money, you know what it is and how much it is worth. Here's a video about money:
There are two most basic forms of money: coins and bills. In the United States, our bills are called dollars. Our coins are called pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters.
In Canada, they also call their bills dollars. They have different coins in Canada, too. They call their coins the one cent piece, five cent piece, ten cent piece, twenty-five cent piece, fifty cent piece, one dollar piece, and two dollar piece.
In Mexico, their bills are called pesos. Their coins are called centavos.
