The more families share the 12-coin bridge, the less each one puts in.
The big ideaA tax is a share everyone puts in for the things everyone uses.
How it works
Brookfield is a made-up town of six families beside a river. The children walk a muddy path, and the families decide they need a bridge.
A bridge costs 12 coins, too many for one family alone. So each family puts 2 coins in a big pot.
Coins put in for things a whole town shares are called taxes. A tax is a share we all put in for things we all use.
Real grown-ups pay taxes from the money they earn, but these are pretend coins. It is fair, because everyone puts in a little and everyone can use what it pays for.
🌉a bridge🏫the school🛝a park swing🛣️a road💡a street lamp📚the library
Things the town pot pays for.How Brookfield got its bridge.
Example 1: Six shares of two
Six families each put in 2 coins.
2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 = 12 coins.
That is enough for the bridge, and nobody paid all 12.
Example 2: Sharing between more families
Two families share 12 coins: 6 + 6 = 12, so 6 coins each.
Four families share: 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 = 12, so 3 coins each.
Six families share: 2 × 6 = 12, so 2 coins each.
The more families share, the fewer coins each one puts in.
Example 3: Shared or not?
A bridge, a park swing, the school and a street lamp are shared by the whole town, so the town pot pays.
A family's own home, Leo's lemonade stand and a child's own bike are paid for by one person or family.
Example 4: Twelve families
Twelve families sharing 12 coins each put in 1 coin.
12 ÷ 12 = 1.
Everybody pays almost nothing, and everybody can use the bridge.
Words to know
tax
A share we all put in for things we all use.
share
To put in a part so that everyone can use something.
pot
Where the shared coins wait.
town
A place where many families live together.
Watch out
Nobody paid all twelve coins. Everybody paid a little.
A tax is for things everyone shares, not for one family's own things.
Not everyone uses everything every day, but everyone uses something.
Try it
Six families each put in 2 coins. How many coins are in the pot?
Four families share a 12-coin bridge. How many coins does each put in?
Is a street lamp paid for by the town pot or by one family?
What is a tax?
Answers: 1. 12 coins · 2. 3 coins · 3. The town pot · 4. A share everyone puts in for things everyone uses
Try at homeAsk a grown-up to point out one thing in your town that everyone shares, like a road, a park or a library.
For grown-upsTake a walk and point out one thing in your town that everyone shares, like a road, a park or a library. Talk about who uses it.
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