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How the Economy Works

CONCEPTUAL
Life Skills›Money & Finance|Ages 9—11|ID: mt_udgPy5oAvR

What an economy is; producers and consumers; supply and demand; why prices change; the basics of how markets work

Mastery Evidence

  • Explain what 'supply and demand' means using a simple example (ice cream on a hot day)
  • Describe the difference between a producer and a consumer
  • Give a reason why the price of something might go up or down

Assessment Prompt

“Could [child] explain why ice cream might cost more at the beach in summer than at a supermarket in winter?”

Prerequisites3

Show full prerequisite tree
  • Jobs People Do hard

    Must know about jobs/work before understanding producers and consumers in an economy

    • What Money Is soft

      Understanding money as exchange helps connect jobs to earning

  • Advertising & Spending soft

    Advertising knowledge helps understand how markets influence behaviour

    • Needs & Wants hard

      Must understand needs vs wants to critically evaluate advertising

      • What Money Is hard

        Must understand money exists and is limited before distinguishing needs from wants

    • Buying Things soft

      Buying experience provides context for understanding advertising pressure

      • Coins & Notes hard

        Must recognise coins/notes and their values before practising buying transactions

        • Coin Values soft

          Curriculum coins/notes recognition (Maths Y1) underpins exploratory coin knowledge

          • Reading and writing numbers to 20 hard

            Recognising coin values requires reading numerals (1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50)

            • How Many in Total? hard

              Reading/writing numerals 0–20 requires understanding that numerals represent quantities (cardinality)

              • One-to-one counting hard

                Cardinality principle builds on one-to-one correspondence — you must count correctly to know the last number tells 'how many'

            • Writing digits 0-9 hard

              Writing numerals requires the motor skill of forming digits 0-9 (taught in English handwriting)

        • What Money Is hard

          Must understand what money is before learning to recognise specific coins and notes

      • What Money Is hard

        Must understand money as exchange medium before practising transactions

  • Buying Things hard

    Must understand buying/selling before grasping supply and demand

    • Coins & Notes hard

      Must recognise coins/notes and their values before practising buying transactions

      • Coin Values soft

        Curriculum coins/notes recognition (Maths Y1) underpins exploratory coin knowledge

        • Reading and writing numbers to 20 hard

          Recognising coin values requires reading numerals (1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50)

          • How Many in Total? hard

            Reading/writing numerals 0–20 requires understanding that numerals represent quantities (cardinality)

            • One-to-one counting hard

              Cardinality principle builds on one-to-one correspondence — you must count correctly to know the last number tells 'how many'

          • Writing digits 0-9 hard

            Writing numerals requires the motor skill of forming digits 0-9 (taught in English handwriting)

      • What Money Is hard

        Must understand what money is before learning to recognise specific coins and notes

    • What Money Is hard

      Must understand money as exchange medium before practising transactions

Unlocks2