Topic 1 of 7
🪙What is money?
Money is a tool. It helps people swap stuff and ideas with each other without having to drag chickens and bags of wheat around.
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Two cave kids trading a fish for an apple, looking confused
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Soft flat illustration, warm cream background. Two ancient-times kid characters in simple animal-skin tunics standing on a grassy hill. One holds a giant silver fish, the other holds a small red apple. Both have raised eyebrows and slightly confused expressions (just simple curved lines, no detailed features). A speech bubble between them shows '?' and '?'. Limited palette: cream #fdfaf3, brand green #1f7a3f, warm browns, muted red. Rounded shapes, thick 2px outlines, slight paper-grain texture. No text in the image except the question marks in the speech bubbles. 16:9 composition.
Long ago, if you wanted bread but only had a fish, you had to find a baker who wanted a fish. Hard! So people invented little metal coins that everyone agreed were worth something. Now you trade fish → coins, coins → bread. Easy.
Money is a promise
A £10 note isn't worth £10 because of the paper. It's worth £10 because everyone in your country promises they'll accept it. Money only works when people trust it.
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A coin, a banknote and a phone screen lined up showing the same value
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Soft flat illustration. Three large objects floating in a row on cream background: (1) a shiny gold coin with a tree symbol stamped on it, (2) a friendly green banknote with a treehouse drawing on it, (3) a smartphone showing a simple balance number on its screen. A tiny equal sign between each. All three glow softly with brand green #1f7a3f light to show they are the same value. Limited palette: cream, brand green, warm gold, soft pink shadow. Rounded shapes, thick outlines, paper texture. No text in image. 3:2 composition.