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GRADE 7
ECONOMIC AND MANAGEMENT SCIENCES
TERM 1
Contents
TOPIC 1: THE ECONOMY - THE HISTORY OF MONEY ................................................... 5

Lesson 1.1........................................................................................................................ 5

Traditional societies ...................................................................................................... 5

Modern Societies .......................................................................................................... 6

Bartering ....................................................................................................................... 6

Activity 1.1.1 ................................................................................................................. 7

Disadvantages of bartering ........................................................................................... 7

Lesson 1.2........................................................................................................................ 7

Early forms of money .................................................................................................... 7

History of coins and paper money ................................................................................ 8

...................................................................................................................................... 8

Lesson 1.3........................................................................................................................ 9

Promissory notes .......................................................................................................... 9

Activity 1.3.1 ............................................................................................................... 10

Homework Task .......................................................................................................... 10

Lesson 1.4...................................................................................................................... 10

Advantages and disadvantages of using the Internet for banking and buying ............ 10

Activity 1.4.1 ............................................................................................................... 11

Lesson 1.5...................................................................................................................... 11

Activity 1.5.1 ............................................................................................................... 12

Lesson 1.6...................................................................................................................... 12

Activity 1.6.1 ............................................................................................................... 13

Activity 1.6.2 ............................................................................................................... 13

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TOPIC 2: NEEDS AND WANTS ........................................................................................ 13

Lesson 2.1...................................................................................................................... 13

An individual’s basic needs......................................................................................... 14

Basic needs of communities and countries................................................................. 14

Activity 2.1.1 ............................................................................................................... 14

Lesson 2.2...................................................................................................................... 15

Activity 2.2.1 ............................................................................................................... 16

Lesson 2.3...................................................................................................................... 17

Activity 2.3.1 ............................................................................................................... 17

Lesson 2.4...................................................................................................................... 18

Limited resources to satisfy needs and wants ............................................................ 18

Activity 2.4.1 ............................................................................................................... 20

Lesson 2.5...................................................................................................................... 20

The Economic Problem .............................................................................................. 20

Activity 2.5.1 ............................................................................................................... 21

Lesson 2.6...................................................................................................................... 21

Needs and wants that are satisfied by water .............................................................. 21

Activity 2.6.1 ............................................................................................................... 21

TOPIC 3: GOODS AND SERVICES .................................................................................. 22

Lesson 3.1...................................................................................................................... 22

The Primary Sector ..................................................................................................... 22

The Secondary Sector ................................................................................................ 23

The Tertiary Sector ..................................................................................................... 23

Activity 3.1.1 ............................................................................................................... 24

Lesson 3.2...................................................................................................................... 25

Goods and services .................................................................................................... 25

Goods ......................................................................................................................... 25

Services ...................................................................................................................... 26

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Activity 3.2.1 ............................................................................................................... 26

Lesson 3.3...................................................................................................................... 27

Producers and consumers .......................................................................................... 27

The role of households as producers and consumers ................................................ 27

Activity 3.3.1 ............................................................................................................... 28

Lesson 3.4...................................................................................................................... 28

Using goods and services efficiently and effectively ................................................... 28

Activity 3.4.1 ............................................................................................................... 29

Lesson 3.5...................................................................................................................... 29

How to recycle and re-use goods to satisfy needs and wants .................................... 29

Activity 3.5.1 ............................................................................................................... 31

Lesson 3.6...................................................................................................................... 31

Activity 3.6.1 ............................................................................................................... 31

TOPIC 4: ENTREPRENEURSHIP - BUSINESSES ........................................................... 32

Lesson 4.1...................................................................................................................... 32

Developing and Developed Countries ........................................................................ 32

Formal and Informal Businesses ................................................................................ 33

Activity 4.1.1 ............................................................................................................... 34

Lesson 4.2...................................................................................................................... 34

Types of business that are both formal and informal .................................................. 34

Activity 4.2.1 ............................................................................................................... 35

Lesson 4.3...................................................................................................................... 36

Advantages and disadvantages of informal and formal businesses ........................... 36

Activity 4.3.1 ............................................................................................................... 37

Lesson 4.4...................................................................................................................... 37

The role of formal and informal businesses as producers and consumers ................. 37

Activity 4.4.1 ............................................................................................................... 38

Activity 4.4.2 ............................................................................................................... 38

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Lesson 4.5...................................................................................................................... 38

The effects of natural disasters and health epidemics on formal and informal
businesses .................................................................................................................. 38

Activity 4.5.1 ............................................................................................................... 39

ASSESSMENT: TERM 1
Task 1: Assignment
Task 2: Test on Term 1 content

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TOPIC 1: THE ECONOMY - THE HISTORY OF

MONEY
In this topic we will learn more about the history of money, from traditional societies, who
used bartering, to the use of promissory notes and coins and to paper money. We will
also learn about modern systems of banking, such as electronic banking and the role of
money in society. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADaY6THQp3Y

Lesson 1.1

Traditional societies
• Over 100 000 years ago, people provided for their own needs.
• They were self-sufficient and lived on whatever was provided by nature.
• There was no trade and no money.
• Examples of people who lived self-sufficient lives were the hunter-gatherers in South
Africa, the 'Twa' in Zaire, the Inuit in Alaska and the Aborigines in Australia.
• They lived on meat from the wild animals and the food
from plants.
• This is called hunting and gathering.
• They used everything they produced.
• People had to produce all the goods and services they
needed.
• They had a limited range of goods and services
available.
• The community used basic methods to hunt and harvest
foods.
• They lacked technology, so most of their activities revolved around people producing
all the things that they needed, to survive.
• This is called a SUBSISTENCE ECONOMY.

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Modern Societies
• Most modern societies use coins, notes and debit or credit cards to pay for goods or
services.
• They also use electronic banking, such as Internet banking.
• A modern society is an Industrialised society that uses technology to produce goods
for trade.
• People have specialised skills and have to rely on other people to produce goods and
provide services that they cannot make or provide.

Bartering
While hunting and gathering means that people provided for their own needs, hunters
were gradually able to tame and keep their animals. This led to herding. Herders moved
from place to place to find food and water, animals and themselves. They kept cattle and
goats and would rather live off the goats’ milk than kill them.

Animals were only killed when there was not enough wild meat to eat. Herders moved in
larger groups from place to place. As groups met each other, they exchanged goods.

As societies developed and started to travel, people started to specialise in the production
of specific goods and foods. They realised that people in other areas had items they
needed or wanted.

A system of trade developed, whereby personal possessions of value could be exchanged

for other goods. This kind of exchange dates back to 9000-6000 BC and is called
bartering, and is still in use today. The first people didn’t buy goods from other people with
money. They bartered with each other.

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Activity 1.1.1

What do you think the advantages and disadvantages of bartering are?

ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES

1. 1.
2. 2.
3. 3.
4. 4.
5. 5.

Disadvantages of bartering
1. It was not always practical.
2. It was difficult to find what you wanted or needed.
3. Goods were difficult to carry or to transport.
4. There is no common measure of value.
5. Certain goods can’t be divided into smaller units.
6. No late payments can be allowed.
7. Storing goods is difficult.
8. It was difficult to work out the real value of the items because people attached different
values to different items.

Lesson 1.2

Early forms of money

The first evidence of a type of money was cowry shells. They were
used in 1200 BC in China. In 1000 BC, China produced imitation
cowry shells - this can be thought of as the original development of
coins.

In about 500 BC, pieces of silver were the earliest coins. These
coins were first used in Lydia (Turkey). In 118 BC, leather
banknotes were used in China.

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History of coins and paper money

9000BCE
Barter with livestock and crops.

1200BCE
Cowry shells used as money in China.
Most widely and longest used currency in history.

1000BCE
“Money” made from metals, such as copper. They often had holes in the centre, so they
could be strung together, for safe-keeping.

700BCE
Coins made from precious metals such as silver, bronze and gold. Coins were valued
according to size and weight.
Later, coins were stamped with its value, so there was no need to weigh them.

800CE
Paper currency appeared in China.

1950CE
Credit cards were issued, and used in the USA.

Today
Internet banking, ATMs used.

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Lesson 1.3

Promissory notes

This means a written and signed promise to pay a sum of money.

Payer: Somebody who pays somebody.

Payee: Somebody to whom money is paid or owed to.

A promissory note must include:

• The term “Promissory Note”.
• The amount that the note is worth.
• Interest that will be added.
• When the payment has to be made.
• The place where payment is to be made.
• Name of the Payee.
• Payer’s signature.
• Terms of repayment.
• Date until when the promissory note is valid.

Visit: www.promissory-note.org to download examples of promissory notes.

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Activity 1.3.1

1. What is the difference between a payer and a payee?

2. What is the difference between a promissory note, and simply writing down the amount
you owe someone, on a piece of paper?
3. Is a banknote a form of a promissory note? Why? Explain your answer.
4. Look at a banknote and write down all the things it has that could make it a promissory
note and all the things it lacks as a promissory note.
5. What would you need to include in a promissory note?

Homework Task
Draw your own promissory note, in your exercise book.
You may decorate it as you like, but make sure that it looks like an official document and
includes all the relevant information.

Lesson 1.4

Advantages and disadvantages of using the Internet for banking and

buying

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Advantages Disadvantages
Available 24 hours a day. More information needed by online store
before purchasing a product.
Consumers and producers need not Personal information not always safe.
be in the same place. Credit card fraud.
More choice in products and services. Cannot check the quality before you buy.
Saves on travelling and time. No personalised customer service.
Faster communication and access to Difficult to return faulty goods.
information.

Activity 1.4.1

1. Find 5 things that you could also do at a bank branch or a shop.

2. Why do you think some people prefer Internet banking?
3. Do you think that Internet banking is safe? Give a reason for your answer.

Lesson 1.5

Security features on a South African Banknote

• Watermark within the paper

• Security thread running through the paper.
• High quality paper
• Print quality

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When people started trading goods for money, they gathered in certain areas to make it
easier for buyers and sellers to meet. This is called Urbanisation.

The role of money

• It is a medium of exchange – use it to buy goods and services.

• Unit of account – standard measure of how much goods and services are worth.
• Store of value – it holds its value over time.

Activity 1.5.1

1. Google some images of South African bank notes.

2. Identify all the security features of the notes.

Lesson 1.6

Consumer Economy
• An economy where businesses encourage consumers to spend as much money as
possible on their goods or services is called a Consumer Economy.
• Consumer spending puts a lot of pressure on the environment.
• Businesses use raw materials to produce goods.
• Sometimes these raw materials run out.
• We need to concentrate on sustainable resources that can be “re-generated” again.
• You can learn more about sustainability on the following website:
www.sustainabilitysa.org

Money is anything that is used as a medium of exchange. (Anything that is used to enable
trade to take place) Money has four important characteristics that make it a sustainable
medium of exchange:
• It is scarce
• It is durable
• It is portable
• It can be divided into smaller units

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Is it possible that in the future, coins and banknotes will become as out of date as cowry
shells?

Activity 1.6.1

1. Write a paragraph, explaining the difference between modern and traditional societies.

Activity 1.6.2

Use Google as a source of reference to answer the following questions:

1. Name the countries that have adopted the euro.
2. Discuss the following:
• Problems of implementation
• The advantages and disadvantages of the euro
• The exchange rate with South Africa
3. Explain the saying: “Money makes the world go round”.

TOPIC 2: NEEDS AND WANTS

Lesson 2.1

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An individual’s basic needs

 Air to breathe
 Water to drink and wash with
 Food to eat
 Shelter to live and be protected
 Fuel for warmth and cooking
 Clothes

Basic needs of communities and countries

 Health services – clinics, hospitals
 Transport services – roads, buses, trains
 Communication services – postal services, telephones, internet
 Education services – schools, universities
 Waste disposal services – sewage systems, garbage removal,
 Safety and security – police, army, fire-fighters

Activity 2.1.1

1) Design a mind map.

• Draw and label the members of your family at home.
• Use the following headings to write how each basic need is satisfied in your family’s
life.

air Picture of yourself shelter

and your family

food
water

fuel clothing

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2) Imagine that you have no money, and you have to leave home and live by yourself.
Make a list of the ten most important things that you would take with you and explain
why.

Lesson 2.2

MASLOW’S HIERARCHY OF NEEDS

Abraham Maslow arranged the different levels of human needs in a pyramid. The base of
the pyramid is formed by the most vital needs such as the need for food, water and
shelter. As human needs in the first level are fulfilled, the next level of needs arise.
It is possible to classify people’s needs and wants into four groups.

SURVIVAL NEEDS
 Survival needs are all the physical needs that we have.
 The need for oxygen to breathe.
 The need for food to eat.
 The need for water to drink.
 The need to sleep.
 The need to be protected from the weather (the cold and the heat).

SECURITY NEEDS
 People also need to feel safe and secure.
 The need to feel that others will not hurt us.
 The need to feel that our belongings will not be taken or broken.
 The need for structure, rules, law and order.
 The need to know that we live and work in a safe environment.

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SOCIAL NEEDS
 People like to have friends and be a part of a group.
 The need to have friends.
 The need to be a part of a team or group.
 The need to feel that we belong somewhere.
 The need to give and receive love.

SELF-ESTEEM NEEDS
 Our self-esteem is the way we feel about ourselves.
 The need to achieve success.
 The need to be good at something.
 The need to feel that what we do is important and valuable.
 The need to be recognized and feel that others respect us.

Needs and wants affect communities in the following ways:

• They determine what kind of products and services are sold in the community.
• Can affect how communities work – use of illegal drugs will lead to gang activity, crime
and violence.
• Poor communities will not be able to spend money at their local shops and businesses.
• Wealthy communities will spend money at local shops, so their communities will
become prosperous.
• The needs of a country are met by the National government.

Activity 2.2.1

Copy and complete the following table

Basic needs of a community How the basic needs are met in my

community
1. Health services
2. Communication services
3. Transport services
4. Educational services
5. Waste disposal systems
6. Safety and security services

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Lesson 2.3

Activity 2.3.1

Group Work
Imagine that you have been shipwrecked on an Island.
You have nothing with you, except the clothes that you are wearing, a copy of a map
and a wet matchbox with 5 matches in it.
While exploring the island to find out what resources are available, you discover
that:
• There are fruits and berries in the forest
• There are fish in the sea that you can eat, but you need to find a way to catch
them (beware of the sharks)
• Goats run wild in the mountains and there are snakes in the desert.
• It is hot in the daytime and cold at night.
• You can only drink the river water if you boil it first.
• There is very little chance of being rescued, so you will have to live on the island
for the rest of your life.

Imagine that you are the only survivor of the shipwreck.

Think of the things that you will have to do each day of the first week.
Write down your survival plan - think of the following:

• What are the first things that you will do on the island?
• Which need, will you satisfy by doing this?
• What resources are on the island?
• Which need, will you be satisfying by doing this?
• Can any of the resources be used for other purposes? If so, what can they be
used for?

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My survival plan – an example:

Day 1:
• I will look for food in the forest.
• I will pick berries to eat.
• This will also help with my need for water because the berries have juice.

Lesson 2.4

Limited resources to satisfy needs and wants

Resources:
• Are things we use to help us do something.
• They satisfy our needs and wants.
• Resources are things we use to produce goods and services.
• There are:
• Natural resources – gold and diamonds satisfy our need/wants for beautiful jewellery.
• Human resources - we need a builder to build our house, a farmer to grow our food, a
plumber to fix our taps.
• Human-made resources - clothes, tools machines, motor vehicles and money.

Limited resources:
• Our wants are unlimited, but we have limited resources to satisfy our wants.
• Resources such as water, people, land, crops, metals, buildings, machines, electricity,
transport, animals and tools are often limited.
• A limited resource is something that there is not a lot of, such as oil or coal, because
this may not last forever.
• We need to use these resources carefully and it should be re-used in different ways,
e.g. recycling.
• The most common limited resource is MONEY.

Non-renewable resources:
• They can run out, and can’t be replaced.

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Renewable resources:
• These will not run out and can be replaced.

Free goods:
• Free goods are those goods that are not scarce because they occur in abundant
quantities - their supply is not limited.
• This high supply usually results in free goods having a market price of zero.
• Goods may be considered free goods in some situations, but not in others.
• For example, fresh air is free because it is not scarce and because we do not have to
pay for every breath of air that we consume.
• However, at the bottom of a mineshaft, the supply of air is limited and large amounts of
money are spent to provide fresh air to miners.
• In this example, fresh air is free on the ground, but isn’t free when its supply is scarce
in a mineshaft.

Economic goods:
• Goods that are not free goods are called economic goods.
• An economic good is an item that is scarce because their supply is limited and
consequently they have a market price.
• Any goods which consumers pay for are economic goods.
• It is important to realize that the price consumers pay for goods is influenced by how
scarce they are and not by how useful they are.
• Consider fresh air, which is essential for life and so very useful to consumers. Even
though fresh air is so useful, we do not usually have to pay for it because its supply is
unlimited; on the other hand, diamonds, even though they have limited uses, are very
expensive because they are so scarce.

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Activity 2.4.1

1. List five limited resources.

2. List four ways in which each of these limited resources is used.
Uses of limited resources are:
3. Write a paragraph about how we can use each of these limited resources so that they
don’t run out.
4. List 5 examples of renewable resources.
5. Can we use any of these renewable resources instead of the limited resources?
Explain your answer. Yes/No we…
6. What natural and human-made resources are there in your community? Draw a table
with 2 columns labelled natural and human-made
7. Which resources in your community are most limited?
Limited resources in my community are:

Lesson 2.5

The Economic Problem

The economic problem which we all face is that we have unlimited

needs and wants, but have limited resources to satisfy them. (South
Africa’s most limited resource is water.)

This problem of scarcity is known as the economic problem.

Because it is impossible to meet all our needs and wants, we have
to choose which ones we will be able to satisfy. Economics is the
study of how people decide about which needs to satisfy and how to
satisfy these needs.

In economics, a country’s natural resources of labour, capital, land and entrepreneurship

are called Factors of Production. Countries need to think about their resources and
decide:
• What to produce?
• How much to produce?
• Who gets to consume the products that are produced?

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There are two kinds of efficiency when it comes to resource use:

• Technical efficiency – Country must use all resources to the full, in a way that gets
the most production out of them.
• Allocative efficiency – Country must produce more of the goods and services that are
in highest demand.

Activity 2.5.1

South Africa’s most limited resource is water. Our country is one of the driest countries on
Earth. It has an average rainfall of about half of the world’s average. In SA we have very
little ground water because of the hard rocks and the combined flow of all our rivers is less
than half of that of the Zambezi River.

1. What needs and wants are satisfied by water?

2. What can you do to protect this limited resource and make sure that it is used wisely?

Lesson 2.6

Needs and wants that are satisfied by water

Needs for water are:
• Habitat for animals
• People need water to drink
• To grow plants – vegetables, crops, fruit, flowers
• Water is one of the resources needed to make electricity

Activity 2.6.1

What can you do to protect water as a limited resource and make sure that it is used
wisely? Design a poster to show how you would use water efficiently.

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TOPIC 3: GOODS AND SERVICES

Lesson 3.1

What is the difference between:

• a shop that sells clothes and a guest house that sells accommodation?
• buying a cell phone and paying someone to fix it for you if it breaks?
• buying groceries and paying for a visit to the doctor?

Who buys and sells these different things? In this topic, you will learn about goods and
services, producers and consumers, and how to use goods and services without being
wasteful. To understand goods and services, you need to know that they come from
different sectors of business. There are three business sectors:

Primary Secondary Tertiary

Sector Sector Sector

The Primary Sector

Businesses in the primary sector are mostly in the rural areas. These businesses make up
the first layer of the economy. People use natural resources directly in this sector. They
produce raw materials which will be used either as they are or sent to the secondary
sector to produce goods. Some activities in the primary sector are:
• farming
• fishing
• forestry
• mining
• hunting and gathering
Primary-sector businesses such as farming and mining are most important to a country.
They produce things / items that you can see and touch.

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The Secondary Sector

Businesses in the secondary sector are normally located just outside the towns. This is the
second layer of the economy. People use raw materials from the primary sector to process
or manufacture things that people can use. These are industries like:
• factories
• ship building yards
• aeroplane construction plants
• a car factory
• anything to do with building, engineering and working with metals.

The Tertiary Sector

Businesses in the tertiary sector are usually located inside the towns. This is the third layer
of the economy. People offer goods produced in the secondary sector, or services, to the
general public in this sector. Some of the goods and services are:
• schools for education services
• hospitals for healthcare services
• banks for money management services
• law firms and courts for legal services

The difference between goods and services is that goods are items that you can see and
touch, while services are what people do to help you and cannot be seen or touched.

• Primary-sector businesses use natural resources directly.

• Secondary-sector businesses use raw materials to manufacture
goods.
• Tertiary-sector businesses provide services.

In poorer countries, most of the money comes from the primary sector. This is because
more people work close to the land for fishing, farming or mining.

In richer countries, most of the money comes from the tertiary sector. This is because
most people and businesses provide goods and services to others.

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The tertiary sector needs products from the primary sector. This is because the tertiary
sector uses what the secondary sector manufactures. So, if one sector breaks down, the
other sectors cannot work properly.

Example: Let’s look at how the desk where you are sitting now is made, and how it passes
through each sector.

PRIMARY SECTOR (Raw Material = Timber)

Trees from a plantation are cut down to produce timber - a
raw material

SECONDARY SECTOR (Manufacturing = Factory)

The timber is sent to a furniture factory, where it is used
with other materials such as glue to make a desk.

TERTIARY SECTOR (Goods = desk)

The desk is sent to a retail outlet to be sold to buyers, in
this instance – Tom Newby School

Activity 3.1.1

1. Can you explain the difference between the primary, secondary and tertiary sector?
2. Draw a flow diagram to explain your answer, using your own example.
3. Look at the list of typical South African businesses below.
4. Copy the following table: Allocate the contents of the given list below to the most
appropriate sector.

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PRIMARY SECTOR SECONDARY SECTOR TERTIARY SECTOR

Mining: miners dig for coal Coal is processed Coal is sold to consumers

Grow sugar cane Sugar Sweets, etc.

• mining
• forestry
• wine
• shipping
• construction
• meat
• music
• clothing factory
• restaurants
• health spas
• bed & breakfast establishments
• car dealership

Lesson 3.2

Goods and services

• Businesses study people’s needs and wants and then produce goods and services to
satisfy them.
• Goods are things that we can see, feel and touch, e.g. a pen, a chair, etc.
• Services are provided to fulfil a need, e.g. the supply of electricity to fulfil the need for
light and power.

Goods

Consumer goods:
• Consumer goods are products that are directly involved in satisfying consumers’ needs
and wants.
• Some goods will last for a long time, e.g. furniture. We call these goods durable
goods.

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• Other goods will not last for a long time and are usually consumed quickly, e.g. bread,
sweets, milk, etc. These good are called non-durable goods.

Capital goods:
Capital goods are those goods that are used to produce other goods and services such as
machinery and delivery vehicles.

Semi-finished goods:
Semi-finished goods are those goods that are used to manufacture other goods, e.g. steel
used to produce metal products like coke cans, etc.

Services

Personal services:
Services that are aimed at the final consumer and are often carried out by professionals.
Doctors, for instance, provide medical services.

Commercial services:
Activities involved in getting goods and services to the consumer, such as banks that offer
banking services. It also involves moving people, goods or information from one place to
another.

Activity 3.2.1

Copy and complete the following table based on goods and services. Can you identify and
list the goods and services you can see around our school.

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Goods Services
• food and drinks for the tuck • teaching and administration
shop
• furniture such as desks and • sports coaching (smart sport)
chairs
• food sales at the tuck shop

REMINDER
BRING A MAGAZINE OR PICTURES OF DIFFERENT
GOODS AND SERVICES FOR LESSON 3.3

Lesson 3.3

Producers and consumers

Consumers: Producers:
buy goods and produce goods and
services from services for
producers consumers

The role of households as producers and consumers

• A household is a group of people who purchase and use goods and services and who
live in a residence.
• A household is a place where one or more people live, eat, sleep and raise children.
• A household can be a flat, a farm or an informal dwelling.
• One person’s spending becomes another person’s income.
• If your parents buy food from Pick ’n Pay, they are spending money and for Pick ’n Pay
it is an income.
• Households therefore buy and consume goods and services.
• They also produce goods and services by selling their labour in exchange for an
income.
• If consumers are not willing to spend their money, businesses will have less income.
• The government depends on businesses and individuals to pay tax.

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• The tax is used to build roads, create more jobs and supply education and health
services.
• Households provide labour, land, capital or management skills and they pay
businesses for goods and services.
• Businesses in turn pay salaries or wages, rent, interest or profits and provide goods
and services.
• Households are therefore both producers and consumers.

Activity 3.3.1

1. Using magazines, find three types of goods and services you use. Paste them into your
workbook and write down the names of the goods and services.
2. Briefly describe what a producer is.
3. Briefly describe what a consumer is.
4. Explain how consumers and producers depend on one another.
5. What do households provide or supply?
6. What does the government use the tax that it receives from consumers and producers
for?

Lesson 3.4

Using goods and services efficiently and effectively

• Goods that households consume are mostly consumer goods.
• Consumer goods are goods that businesses manufacture for the mass market.
• They are the goods that most people want and can afford.
• These people will use them as soon as they buy them, e.g. clothing, electronics and
cars.
• It seems that consumers are not using their goods and services efficiently and
effectively as there is a lot of wastage of goods.

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• A healthy environment has a balance between consumption of natural resources and

production.
• A perfect balance is replacing natural resources as they are used, like planting trees to
replace those that are being cut off, in the use for paper or furniture.
• Everybody should focus on creating more goods and services and using fewer natural
resources.
• We should also create jobs that produce goods or provide services that benefit the
environment and conserve our natural resources.
• The production process should be more environmentally friendly.

Activity 3.4.1

In groups, discuss the following in preparation for a report back to the class. Create a
mind map of your ideas.

1. What can we, as consumers, do to ensure that we use our goods and services
efficiently and effectively?
2. What items do you think consumers waste the most of?
3. How can we stop wastages occurring at home or at school?

REMINDER
Bring in plastic bottles, cans, plastic bags, etc. for Lesson 3.5

Lesson 3.5

How to recycle and re-use goods to satisfy needs and wants

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• Recycling involves collecting materials such as waste paper, plastic, glass and metal
cans.
• Waste products make our water, air and land unhealthy and cause pollution.
• Different businesses collect our rubbish to recycle some of its contents.

You can recycle in the following ways:

Place waste in recycling containers

Use different bins or bags for recyclable
materials, like a bag for paper only and bins
for glass and cans. Otherwise, waste is
sent to landfill sites where it is thrown into a
large hole and will eventually be covered up
with soil.

Re-use waste
Re-use waste materials for other purposes,
e.g. vegetable peels can be turned into
fertiliser.

Process the recyclable materials

Clean recyclable materials and sort them
into groups so that they can be sold to
manufactures that will then turn them into
new or other products.

Manufacture other products from

recyclable materials
Many products are and can be made out of
old waste. Some entrepreneurs use old
metal bottle caps to create jewellery and
handbags.

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Activity 3.5.1

Project: Best of waste

Create a new product from waste. You can use any waste material.
Example:
 a piggy bank made from a cold drink bottle
 bracelets and jewellery
 toys – a robot, a computer
 Write down the steps in making your product.
 Explain the purpose of the product.
 Explain how you or other people can benefit from the product.
 How can you make money out of it?

You must be able to sell the product/s that you create at the Grade 7 Entrepreneurship
event at school this year, so give it some careful thought.

REMINDER
Find articles in newspapers or magazines that are linked to pollution and how businesses
have supported the community in jobs, projects, etc. for Lesson 3.6.

Lesson 3.6

Purchase recycled goods

All consumers should try to assist the recycling process by purchasing recycled goods
instead of goods that are not recycled.

Activity 3.6.1

1. Explain how consumers can reduce or reuse waste.

2. Make a list of the responsibilities consumers have to help solve the problem of a
polluted environment.

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3. Find articles in newspapers or magazines where businesses:

a. Have provided jobs for the community
b. Have assisted the community in other ways
c. Have damaged the environment
4. Explain the following statement:
“Businesses are important to communities because they provide employment, but they
can damage the environment by creating air, noise and visual pollution.”
Based on the articles that you have read and discussions in class, would you say that
the influence of businesses in the community is mostly positive or negative?

TOPIC 4: ENTREPRENEURSHIP -
BUSINESSES

Lesson 4.1

Developing and Developed Countries

In a Developing Country:
• There is very little industrialisation.
• People have a low standard of living.
• The average income per person is low.
• A large percentage (about 70%) of the people work for themselves in small business.

Most African countries are examples of developing countries. Developing countries are
known as “Third World countries”.

In a Developed country:
• There is advanced industrialisation and technology.
• People have a high standard of living.
• The average income per person is high.
• A large percentage of the people work in big businesses that contribute to the
country’s economy.

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Formal and Informal Businesses

A formal business has followed the necessary procedures and policies that apply to their
businesses. A formal business can take on various forms of ownership. Formal businesses
have been registered legally and are also registered with the South African Revenue
Services (SARS) for tax purposes and will be licenced in terms of local municipal laws.
An informal business is one that usually does not have a fixed or officially recognised
business site or premises. It is not officially registered and usually does not keep official
records. An informal business is easy to start up as it is not registered or recorded for tax
purposes. This includes all economic activity that is not known to the government and local
authorities.

There are three main reasons why people trade in the informal sector:

• They cannot find employment in the formal sector.

• They take part in illegal activities that they should not be involved in.
• They do not want to pay tax.

The formal sector The informal sector

Follow formal procedures and policies Do not follow any formal procedures to set
up
Are large or small in size Are usually small in size and are often
involved in small scale business activities
Usually employ a number of paid Usually do not employ people and, if they
employees who are registered tax payers do, they only employ a few paid employees
Many employees will have a high level of Employees would usually have less
skills and training and some may be sophisticated levels of skills and training
unskilled workers
Have a permanent and recognised Do not have officially recognised business
physical business address premises
Keep official records and will find it difficult Do not keep official records and find it easy
to avoid paying tax to avoid paying tax
Often use sophisticated marketing Use unsophisticated marketing methods
methods
May use local or international resources Have no or very little access to local or
like finance or capital international resources, for example,
finance or capital
May use advanced technology in their May use advanced technology in their
production process production process
Are usually certain about their expected Face an uncertain expected income
income, although less often in the case of
small businesses

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Activity 4.1.1

Create a table with the following headings. Complete the table, using the list provided.

Business Formal Informal

Self-employed artisans, home brewers, shoemakers, dressmakers, tailors, hawkers, flea-

market traders, shebeen staff, taxi operators, loan sharks, traditional healers, backyard
mechanics, sellers of brand clothing and bags, pirate DVD’s, thieves, prostitutes, Kwik-fit
centre, Vodacom or MTN cell phone shop, fast food caravan near building site, jewellery
shop, catering company that caters for weddings, art gallery, ENGEN garage, Shoprite,
Pick ‘n Pay, Total Sports.

Lesson 4.2

Types of business that are both formal and informal

Businesses can be divided into three types: trading, manufacturing and service businesses

1. Trading Business
• Trading businesses are also called retailers.
• They sell products that are made by other businesses or people, directly to the
consumer.
• Retailers or trading businesses buy goods at a certain price from their suppliers and
sell these goods at a higher price to their customers for a profit.
• Formal trading businesses usually sell from shop premises, while informal trading
business could sell from market stalls or even trade from home.
• Examples: CNA, Fruit & Veg City, Toys-R-Us, furniture stores, spaza shops, etc.

2. Manufacturing Business
• Manufacturing businesses make products that people or other businesses need or
want.
• They turn raw materials or semi-finished products into finished products e.g. food,
clothes, tools, cars machinery and furniture.

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• Formal manufacturing businesses usually operate from well-equipped factories, while

informal manufacturers could operate from home.
• Manufacturers could sell to other businesses or directly to the public.
• They tend to sell in large quantities to retail or trading businesses who in turn sell to
customers.

3. Services Business
• Service businesses sell their skills and time to other businesses or people.
• They provide a service and charge a fee for their services.
• Formal service businesses often operate from business premises, but can also operate
from home.
• Informal service businesses often operate from home or from a temporary structure on
pavements or at market places.
• Hairdressers, beauty consultants, doctors, motor mechanics, plumbers,
electricians and cleaning and garden services are some examples of
personal service businesses.
• Transport services such as airlines (SAA), taxis (Sentaco), trains (Metrorail), and buses
(Putco Bus Services) are also service businesses.
• Banks such as ABSA, architects such as AVNA, accountants such as Price
Waterhouse Coopers, lawyers such as Legal Wise, estate agents such as Pam
Golding and travel agents such as Thompsons Travel also form part of services
businesses.

Activity 4.2.1

1. List the names of three formal and informal businesses in your community.
2. Identify and list three services businesses, three retail businesses and three
manufacturing businesses in your area.
3. Explain how each of the businesses listed in question 2, meets the needs of the
community.
4. Paste a copy of the table into your workbooks.
5. Classify each business by placing a tick in the appropriate column.

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6. In the ‘Type of business’ column, indicate what goods or services you think the
businesses provide.

Business Types of Trading Manufacturing Service

Activity business Business Business Business
Chicken Farm
Retail store
Insurance
company
Bank
Dentist
Taxi operator

Lesson 4.3

Advantages and disadvantages of informal and formal businesses

INFORMAL BUSINESSES

Advantages Disadvantages
• Owner pays little or no tax • Owner does not contribute to the cost of
• Business provides jobs running the country by paying tax
• Businesses alleviates poverty • Businesses are unregulated, which makes
• Easy to set up because they are small them potentially dangerous and illegal
• Cheap to run
• Contribute to the economy
• Owner learns business skills

FORMAL BUSINESSES

Advantages Disadvantages
• Access to big markets • Expensive to set up
• Access to credit • Expensive to run
• Access to legal support • Have to pay tax
• Create jobs • Complying with government regulations
• Contribute to the economy • Is expensive and a lot of work
• Taxes help to run the country • Owners need to skilled and trained
• Regulations mean that your customers
trust your products and services

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Activity 4.3.1

Julian loves working in gardens and wants to study landscaping after school. To make
some extra money, he has started a small garden service, as an informal business. He
services three gardens per week, on weekdays, two gardens on Saturdays and one
garden on a Sunday. His father helped him to build a trailer for his bicycle. He carries his
gardening tools in the trailer.

1. List two advantages of informal businesses that apply to Julian’s business.

2. Name four other advantages of informal businesses.
3. Explain the disadvantages of Julian’s informal business.

Lesson 4.4

The role of formal and informal businesses as producers and

consumers
• Both formal and informal businesses contribute to the economy of South Africa by
providing goods and services to consumers.
• Informal businesses sell to people in their area, while formal businesses may sell to a
wider community.
• Although formal businesses do not provide jobs for the whole working population, they
do create job opportunities for job seekers.
• When people are employed, they have a steady source of income, which they can use
to live on and also for investing.
• Formal businesses help to develop and support resources in communities.
• Even though people in informal businesses do not pay tax to the government, they still
contribute to the economy because they are self-employed and they are able to
support themselves.
• They, in fact, lesson poverty and unemployment.
• It is estimated that informal businesses contribute to approximately 12% of the Gross
Domestic Product (GDP)

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Activity 4.4.1

1. Consider two formal businesses such as Pick ’n Pay and Cell C, and say how each of
these businesses contribute to the economy.
2. Read the article below and answer the questions that follow.

Activity 4.4.2

Spaza Shops

Spaza shops, also called tuck shops, are

small, informal retail outlets, often operating
from shipping containers and homes. They
sell mainly soft drinks, cigarettes, paraffin,
candles, maize meal, bread, tin food and
alcohol.

There are estimated to be 100 000 spaza shops in South Africa, with a collective turnover
of R7 billion per annum. It is estimated that each spaza shop employs 2 or 3 people, who,
in turn, support 4 family members, on average.

1. What kind of business sector do spaza shops fall into?

2. List three products that are sold by spaza shops.
3. Explain two ways in which spaza shops contribute to the economy.
4. Explain two challenges that spaza shop owners face.

Lesson 4.5

The effects of natural disasters and health epidemics on formal and

informal businesses
Natural disasters are natural events, as opposed to the man-made events, that damage
the environment or buildings and kill people and animals. Examples of natural disasters
are storms, floods, hurricanes, tsunamis, volcanoes, earthquakes, fires, landslides and
droughts.

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A health epidemic is when a disease such as swine flu or HIV/Aids affects a population
and is widespread. Whether a disaster is natural or man-made it can affect both the
informal and formal business sector in many ways. Health epidemics will also impact on
the informal and formal business sector. Some examples of the effects are:

• If a person working in the informal or formal business comes into contact with a sick
customer or fellow worker, he or she may also become infected.
• Businesses may have to spend more on training programmes to train replacement
staff.
• The supply of goods and services may slow down when workers get ill and do not
report for work.
• Natural disasters may destroy infrastructure such as roads, hospitals, schools and
factories.
• The economic cost of a natural disaster can run into billions of rands.
• The economy will slow down because there will be less spending.
• Insurance companies lose billions of rands with all the insurance claims that they have
to pay out.
• If people who support their families and households financially lose their lives in a
natural disaster or from disease, the remaining relatives could be left poorer off.

Activity 4.5.1

1. List examples of natural disasters and health epidemics.

2. Discuss the effect of natural disasters and health epidemics on formal and informal
businesses.
3. What could the government do to help business people affected by natural disasters?
4. What could other businesses do to help?

GM 2018