Build an Investment Garden
Would you trust one plant to feed the whole village?
Learning objectives
- Explain shares and funds in simple terms
- Describe diversification
- Connect time horizon and risk
Vocabulary
- Investment
- Money you put into something hoping it grows, though it can fall.
- Share
- Giving some money to help others, or a small part of a company.
- Fund
- A basket that holds many investments together in one place.
- Diversification
- Spreading money across many things so one loss hurts less.
- Risk
- The chance that something might go wrong or lose value.
Materials
Minute-by-minute flow
6′
Hook
Teacher does
Show one-crop and mixed gardens.
Students do
Predict what a storm might do.
14′
Teach
Teacher does
Map companies to plants and a fund to a basket.
Students do
Build the analogy.
20′
Portfolio garden
Teacher does
Give equal tokens and asset cards.
Students do
Build and justify a diversified mix.
12′
Storm test
Teacher does
Reveal changing events.
Students do
Observe that parts respond differently.
8′
Exit
Teacher does
Separate risk reduction from removal.
Students do
Correct: Diversification guarantees safety.
Check for understanding
Can the learner explain that diversification spreads risk but cannot remove it?
Exit ticket
One investment should not decide everything because…
Support
Use picture-coded categories.
Stretch
Add costs, regions and time horizons.
Home connection
Find three different kinds of businesses used by your household.