money and debt

What is money?

Here is the classic explanation:
What Is Money?

Here's what Wikipedia has to say:
Money is any item or verifiable record that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment ofdebts in a particular country or socio-economic context.^[1][2][3] The main functions of money are distinguished as: amedium of exchange; a unit of account; a store of value; and, occasionally in the past, a standard of deferred payment.^[4][5]

And there are lots of lessons out there on the subject of 'money' and 'debt':
Vocabulary lesson: Money | TeachingEnglish | British Council | BBC
Money conversations | TeachingEnglish | British Council | BBC
Breaking News English ESL Lesson Plan on Money Worries
What You Can Do With Money: 10 Activities For Your ESL Classroom
Money,spending and finances lesson plans for teachers: eslflow webguide

A very provocative book came out a couple of years ago challenging the ideas around money and debt:
Debt: The First 5000 Years - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Here's a good introduction:

Are we slaves to debt? David Graeber on the history of spending more than we have

August 12, 2011

Almost forty years ago, on August 15, 1971 President Nixon took America off the gold standard, declaring, “We must protect the position of the American dollar as a pillar of monetary stability around the world” — which meant, among other things, that there were really no longer boundaries on the amount of money that could be printed.This began what anthropologist and author David Graeber says is the latest pendulum swing away from an economy based on hard currency to one based on virtual money, or credit, which can lead to debt spinning out of control —everyone’s favorite topic this summer.

Graeber’s new book, “Debt: The First 5,000 years,” traces the origins of owing all the way back to Mesopotamia, and explores how debt and morality became intertwined, among other intriguing details.  Need to Know’s Alison Stewart spoke with Graeber to help explain why being consumed by debt is nothing new.

Last modified: August 12, 2011 at 3:24 pm

Video: Are we slaves to debt? David Graeber on the history of spending more than we have | Need to Know | PBS

Here's another video to follow up:
Interview with Graeber on Debt Part 1 Part 2 (Conversations with Great Minds)

And an hour-long video:
Authors@Google: David Graeber, DEBT: The First 5,000 Years, lecture about the book by David Graeber
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