How does the economy work? (and other important money questions)

It’s a big day for Ryan and Bridget. For the first time, they are hosting a live call-in radio show to answer questions from listeners. After some awkward fumbling in the studio, they explain how the economy works, why we use money, why some stores offer coupons and why the ($) symbol for dollars is an S with a dash through it.

All good questions! It’s going to be a jam-packed episode!

Money talks

After you’ve listened to the episode, here are some questions you can ask your child to see how much he’s learned:

1. What’s a great reason to use the money we make?
2. Have you ever used coupons to buy a product? If so, what did you buy and how much money did you save? Did you buy the item again at a discounted price?
3. Based on how the economy feels at home, how do you think the broader US economy is doing?
4. *BONUS* Random Question: If you could design a new logo for money, what would it look like?

Note jar

For listeners who want to learn more about economics, we’ve got ideas!

• If you want to learn about the origin of the US dollar and the influence of the Spanish silver dollar, take a look This history (with pictures!) of US currency From the US Currency Education Program at the Federal Reserve.
• If you want to dive deeper into dollar and currency symbols and find out why different countries use different currencies, watch the episode „Million Bazillion” where Bridget and Ryan travel to Washington DC.
• In this episode, we learn that stores offer discount coupons in the hope that customers will buy the item at full price. Check out if you want to start couponing to save money This beginner’s guide from NerdWallet.

Give 5

Thanks for listening to this episode! We are always accepting additional questions for future „Live Call”😉 events. Send us questions you’d like your young listeners to answer using this online form.

This episode is sponsored by Greenlight. Get one month free and $10 when you sign up with Greenlight greenlight.com/million.