Swap and Swap
by Anonymous · ⭐ 1 · 🍴 0
How did people get things before money? 🤝 Look at what villagers «have → want» and match them in pairs. Bartering works only when both sides want what the other has—one-sided wants won’t make a trade. The salt seller wants rice, but the rice owner doesn’t want salt, so he can’t trade with anyone. 🐚 So people chose something «everyone would accept». Once shells appeared, selling and buying became separate: if one sack of rice isn’t enough, sell another. 🪙 Tap to see what can become money. Fish don’t last long, and rice is heavy. What has all four qualities? This app was made with code too · Remix it and build a village with things from our class!
About this app
Swap after swap is an interactive economics lesson for exploring how people trade without money. Compare villagers’ possessions and wants to find successful and one-sided barter pairs, then use shells as a commonly accepted medium to sell rice and buy goods. A final activity lets learners test rice, fish, shoes, clothing, salt, gold, and shells against four properties of money: durability, divisibility, portability, and difficulty of production.
Use cases
- Elementary students learning about barter and money
- Teachers introducing basic economics through guided interaction
- Parents exploring trade and currency concepts with children
- Classroom discussions about what makes useful money
Features
- Three tabs covering barter, shell money, and money requirements
- Selectable villagers with visible “has → wants” relationships
- Step-by-step rice-selling and shell-buying activity with prices and shortages
- Interactive checklist for four properties of money
- Progress goals, feedback messages, reset and next-step controls
- Optional sound toggle