WHENUA & POWER · MISSION 05

ECONOMY SIMULATOR

YEAR 8 · TERM 2 · WEEK 5

Money, Tax & Economy

Where does money move in an economy?

ECONOMY CONTROL · FICTIONAL HOUSEHOLD: Money does not sit in one box. Wages, spending, tax, saving, borrowing and public services connect households, businesses, banks and government. Trace the flows, then stress-test one household without confusing a simplified model with the real economy.

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MISSION DECKWHENUA & POWER / WEEK 05SELECT A MODULE

01BRIEFMission

02LEARNIntel

03INVESTIGATEEvidence

04ENGLISHEvidence case

05DECIDEMake the call

06DATANumbers

07PROJECTBuild

08CHECK-INReflect

★GAMEReward

ACTIVE OBJECTIVEECONOMY CONTROL · FICTIONAL HOUSEHOLD: Money does not sit in one box. Wages, spending, tax, saving, borrowing and public services connect households, businesses, banks and government. Trace the flows, then stress-test one household without confusing a simplified model with the real economy.

WORLDWHENUA & POWER

SEQUENCE01 / 08

REWARDGAME BREAK

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READY?

Watch. Check the clues. Have a go.

Everything you need is on this page.

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Need help getting started?

YOU NEED

Required: a device with this page open.
Optional: headphones for video or read-aloud.
Optional: pen + paper for rough working if that helps you think.

HOW TO DO IT

Read or listen to the Briefing + Learn.
Do the interactive mission.
Use facts from the reading and maths parts.
Make your choice and save your project step.
Play the weekly game. Finish Check-in.

WORK YOUR WAY

Short bursts are fine. Use Learning Tools for easier reading, read-aloud, less on screen, stronger contrast, no-rush and quieter-screen options.

If you get stuck, look at the example and try again.

MISSION BRIEFING

ECONOMY CONTROL · FICTIONAL HOUSEHOLD: Money does not sit in one box. Wages, spending, tax, saving, borrowing and public services connect households, businesses, banks and government. Trace the flows, then stress-test one household without confusing a simplified model with the real economy.

✓Explain several basic money flows between households, businesses, financial institutions and government.

✓Explain that inflation is a broad rise in prices that reduces purchasing power when income does not rise by the same amount.

✓Explain that changes in interest rates can affect borrowing costs and savings returns, while recognising that household effects differ.

✓Apply a New Zealand consumer-rights principle to a faulty-product scenario and distinguish a legal guarantee from an optional store warranty.

INTERACTIVE LEARN MODE

No passive video this week.

This mission is deliberately built around its simulator, investigation, decision room or prototype instead of an external video.

LEARN

FLOW → SHOCK → RESPONSE → LIMIT

An economy is a network of flows. Households can earn income from work, buy goods and services, save, borrow and pay tax. Businesses pay wages, sell products and services, invest and also face costs. Government collects tax and uses public money for services and other spending. Financial institutions connect saving and borrowing. Inflation means average prices are rising, so unchanged income buys less. Interest-rate changes can alter the cost of borrowing and returns on saving. Employment changes can alter household income and spending. None of these effects is identical for every person. In New Zealand, consumer law also matters: the Consumer Guarantees Act sets minimum guarantees for goods and services bought from businesses for personal or household use, and store warranties do not replace those legal rights.

LEARNING BUILD

Learn it. See it. Try it.

Look at the example. Check another point of view. Then try the task.

Step 1: Choose a starting clue

WHAT YOU ALREADY KNOW

Reasoning lens:SOURCE → PROVENANCE → MECHANISM / POWER → COUNTER-EVIDENCE → LIMIT → JUDGEMENT

What do you already know?

English / communication:Explain systems and evaluate everyday financial choices using evidence and limitations.

Maths / data:Interest, inflation, percentage change, budgets and financial plans.

Topic knowledge:Credit/debt, inflation, tax and public services, consumer rights, employment and household trade-offs.

This week’s first target:Explain several basic money flows between households, businesses, financial institutions and government.

Which clue is a good place to start?

Choose a source that can directly support part of the investigation. More than one source may be useful, but start with evidence that does not outrun its support.

Need more help? See the teaching

TEACH 1 · CORE MODEL

TEACH 2 · WHAT TO NOTICE

Explain several basic money flows between households, businesses, financial institutions and government.Explain that inflation is a broad rise in prices that reduces purchasing power when income does not rise by the same amount.

TEACH 3 · CONNECT + TRANSFER

Explain that changes in interest rates can affect borrowing costs and savings returns, while recognising that household effects differ. Apply a New Zealand consumer-rights principle to a faulty-product scenario and distinguish a legal guarantee from an optional store warranty.

WORKED EXAMPLE · EVIDENCE

INFLATION

Inflation is a rise in average prices across many goods and services. If income stays unchanged while prices rise, purchasing power falls.

Reasoning: Start with exactly what the source establishes. Connect it to the relevant concept, then stop before the claim becomes broader than the evidence. In this source set, every evidence card is marked strong. That means the next job is comparison and limitation, not inventing a weak source.

Why caution still matters:Every supplied source is useful evidence here, but “strong” never means unlimited proof. A careful conclusion still compares sources, keeps context visible and names what the collection cannot establish.

WORKED EXAMPLE · MATHS / DATA ROUTE

A fictional weekly essentials basket rises from $320 to $336. What is the percentage increase?

This week’s maths/data focus:Interest, inflation, percentage change, budgets and financial plans.

Identify the dates, quantities, denominator or map scale first. Calculate carefully, then return the number to its historical or geographic context. A correct number does not explain the whole story by itself.

WE DO · GUIDED PRACTICE

Every source in this set is marked strong. What is the best next move?

Strong evidence still has scope. Choose the move that keeps comparison and limitations visible.

YOU TRY · INDEPENDENT PRACTICE

For Money, Tax & Economy, explain one core idea, connect it to one named source or observation and one quantitative/data point from this page, then state an alternative explanation, trade-off or limitation that a strong judgement must consider.

Write at least 30 words. Name the evidence or data you are using and keep the claim inside what it can support.

MISCONCEPTION CHECK

STRONG ≠ UNLIMITED PROOF. A source can be strong for one question and still be unable to represent every perspective, cause, scale or consequence.

Every supplied source is useful evidence here, but “strong” never means unlimited proof. A careful conclusion still compares sources, keeps context visible and names what the collection cannot establish.

HELP

Try: “Source/provenance ___ supports ___. A competing interpretation is ___. The strongest limitation is ___. Therefore my judgement is ___.”

STRETCH · OPTIONAL

Build the strongest reasonable counter-argument or alternative explanation. Name one additional piece of evidence that could distinguish between the two positions.

ECONOMY CONTROL

Follow the money. Stress-test the system.

Route the core money flows, test three household shocks, then solve a New Zealand consumer-rights case. The model is simplified on purpose.

SHOCK 1

ESSENTIALS +5%

$320 → $336 per week

SHOCK 2

BORROWING PAYMENT RISES

Fictional payment: $95 → $112

SHOCK 3

HOURS CUT

Weekly income: $1,180 → $1,020

NZ CONSUMER RIGHTS

A new household appliance bought from a NZ business fails much earlier than reasonably expected. The store says its optional warranty has expired. What is the strongest next check?

Open all five money flows, test all three shocks and solve the consumer-rights check.

OPEN THE EVIDENCE NOTES

SOURCE 1

INFLATION

Inflation is a rise in average prices across many goods and services. If income stays unchanged while prices rise, purchasing power falls.

SOURCE 2

INTEREST

Interest-rate changes can influence what households and businesses pay to borrow and what savers may receive. The effect depends on the type of debt, savings and timing.

SOURCE 3

TAX & SERVICES

In New Zealand, tax collected by Inland Revenue contributes to public services including health, education, transport, emergency services and law and order.

SOURCE 4

CONSUMER RIGHTS

The Consumer Guarantees Act sets minimum guarantees for products and services sold by businesses for personal or household use. Depending on the problem, remedies can include repair, replacement or refund.

SOURCE 5

MODEL LIMIT

The simulator uses invented household amounts and simplified flows. It is not a forecast and does not reproduce real tax brackets, lending contracts or every part of the New Zealand economy.

INVESTIGATE + ENGLISH · EVIDENCE CASE

Follow the flow — then check the limits

Imagine a household with wages coming in, bills and purchases going out, some money saved and some debt being repaid. If the prices of many everyday items rise while household income stays the same, the same income buys less. If borrowing becomes more expensive, some borrowers may face higher costs, although the timing and size depend on their contract. If employment income falls, the household may have to change spending, saving or borrowing decisions. Tax is another flow: governments collect revenue and use public money for services and spending. Consumer law also shapes everyday choices. In New Zealand, legal guarantees under the Consumer Guarantees Act are separate from an optional store warranty. A model can show these connections, but it cannot predict exactly how every household will respond.

BUILD THE EVIDENCE CASE · CLAIM → EVIDENCE → REASONING

MAKE THE CALL

Complete Economy Control: route the core money flows, test all three shocks, and solve the consumer-rights case. Then choose one household action you could justify from the model and one conclusion the model is too simple to support.

BUILD YOUR CASE CONCLUSION1. Make the call. 2. Use at least two relevant pieces of evidence. 3. Explain one limitation or uncertainty. 4. Finish with what can responsibly be concluded.Strong structure: My judgement is… The strongest evidence is… However, we still do not know… Therefore…

CASE CONCLUSION: Write 220–290 words explaining how one fictional household is affected by three connected changes: a 5% rise in its weekly essentials basket, a higher borrowing payment and a loss of some employment income. Trace at least three money flows, explain one possible household response, include the role of tax/public services or consumer rights, and name two limitations of the simulator.

YOUR REASONING

0/220 words minimum for this writing mission.

CLAIMEVIDENCELIMITATIONCONCLUSION

MATHS + DATA LAB

Check the numbers.

HOW TO SUCCEEDRead the situation first. Estimate what a sensible answer should look like, choose an efficient calculation, then use the feedback to check your reasoning.For data questions, explain what the number shows — and what it does not prove.

A fictional weekly essentials basket rises from $320 to $336. What is the percentage increase?

Estimate first, then choose the answer.

MISSION 05 · MATHS + DATA LAB

DATA TRAINING

FRACTIONS + PERCENT · YEAR 8 EXTENSION

6 PROBLEMS

QUICK METHODFRACTIONS + PERCENT

Convert between fractions, decimals and percentages, then calculate from the whole.

GUIDED · Q01–Q03Use the quick method, then check the explanation.

Q01

What is 25% of 200?

Q02

Which fraction equals 50%?

Q03

0.25 as a percentage is…

INDEPENDENT · Q04

Which is largest?

INDEPENDENT · Q05

A $80 item is reduced by 25%. What is the discount?

INDEPENDENT · Q06

After a 25% discount on $80, what is the new price?

OPTIONAL CHALLENGE · OPEN RESPONSE

A price rises 20%, then falls 20%. Is it back to the starting price? Explain with a numerical example.

0 words · optional

PROJECT HQ · PROJECT FILE 05

PLAN — choose project format and evidence story.

Start something real. Build an idea, test it, improve it, and share it. Make your move.

Your Power & Place case study begins now. Choose a question about rights, institutions, reform or place that can be tested against varied evidence and competing perspectives.

PROJECT HQ · PROJECT FILE 05

PLAN

PROJECT JOURNEYWEEK 5 / 9

Choose a format that makes the evidence trail understandable.

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THIS WEEKPLAN

Complete only this project step today. Your saved work carries forward, so you do not need to finish the whole project at once.

A STRONG STEPSpecific · useful · achievable

Use evidence from this week's mission, name a real audience or purpose, and make the idea small enough to test and improve.

BEFORE YOU SAVE, CHECK:✓ I answered every field clearly✓ I used evidence or reasoning from this week✓ My next step is realistic

PROJECT FORMATEVIDENCE STORYSUCCESS CRITERIA

Write in each box. Your answers save on this device as you type.

IDEA→RESEARCH→PLAN→BUILD→TEST→IMPROVE→PRESENT

Project sharing will be optional. A future upload system must keep private submission separate from public-showcase/marketing permission.

CHECK-IN

What changed in your thinking?

One thing I learned or questioned

YEAR 8 · REMIX · TERM 2 / WEEK 5

CLAW CONTROL

Use limited attempts to position, lift and deliver the highest-value prizes.

UPGRADED DIFFICULTYBEST SCORE SAVED

PLAY CLAW CONTROL

A remastered ICONIC GAMES favourite · phone + keyboard controls.