Story Synopsis: "A fresh and moving story of a mother's dedication to acquire a coat for her daughter in post-World War II hard times. Anna's mother decides to trade the few valuables she has left for wool and for the services of a spinner, a weaver, and a tailor. Lobel's pictures do a tremendous job of evoking the period. Insightful and informative, this may make children consider how precious the ordinary can become in times of turmoil."--(starred) Booklist.  

LESSON: A NEW COAT FOR ANNA

Lesson Summary
 
At the end of World War II, Anna needed a new winter coat, but her mother had no money. They use valuable things they own to barter for the goods and services needed to produce the coat.

Concept: Money

Definition:  People trade (exchange) with each other to get the goods and services they want. To make trade easier, people use money. Money is anything widely accepted as final payment for goods and services.

Comprehension Questions

Explain how Anna could get a new coat for the winter without any money.
Her mother traded a gold watch and other nice things for wool and the services of the craft people to make the coat.

Explain why Anna and her mother had no money.
It was wartime and no one had any money.

List all the trades Anna's mother made in order to get the new coat.
Gold watch to the farmer for wool; a lamp to the old woman to spin wool into yarn; garnet necklace to the weaver to weave yarn into cloth; teapot to the tailor for sewing cloth into a coat.

What natural resources were needed to produce the coat?
Wool from the sheep, lingonberries.

What human and capital resources were needed to produce the coat?

Human Resources Capital Resources farmer shearing scissors old woman spinning wheel girl and mother basket (for berries) weaver loom tailor measuring tape, sewing machine, scissors, pins

List all the steps for producing Anna's new coat.
Shear the sheep, spin the wool into yarn, dye the yarn, weave yarn into cloth, sew the cloth into coat.

Explain why it took much longer for Anna to get her coat than if she had money to buy one.
They had to wait until spring to shear the sheep. They had to wait until the end of the summer to get the berries. They had to wait for each person to do each step in the process of making the coat.

Other Concepts: Productivity, Productive Resources, Natural Resources, Human Resources, Capital Resources

  Trade and Money 

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