Graham Iddon

• February 3, 2022

  Queen of the bank notes

  By: Graham Iddon

  
  

  

  Few of us have ever met her, and it’s likely none of us are even remotely related to her. Yet, Canadians have carried her picture in their wallets for generations now. She’s Queen Elizabeth II and has been our monarch for over 70 years.

  Content type(s): Blog posts Subject(s): History
• December 2, 2021

  The true value of money

  By: Graham Iddon

  
  

  

  What is money—when you really stop to think about it? To understand how money works, and what it ultimately represents, we need to strip it down to its very basic function.

  Content type(s): Blog posts Subject(s): Economy Grade level(s): Grade 07 / Secondary 1, Grade 08 / Secondary 2, Grade 09 / Secondary 3, Grade 10 / Secondary 4, Grades 11 and 12 / Secondary 5 and CEGEP
• October 21, 2021

  Moving mountains

  By: Graham Iddon

  
  

  

  The $20 bill of 1969 was the prototype of the Scenes of Canada note series. Yet, as more notes were designed, the theme—and the $20 note itself—would change.

  Content type(s): Blog posts
• August 19, 2021

  Fur Trade Economics

  By: David Bergeron, Graham Iddon, Krista Broeckx

  
  

  

  Over its 350-year lifespan, the Hudson’s Bay Company has had an enormous impact on Canada’s economy and how the nation was settled.

  Content type(s): Blog posts Subject(s): Economy, History, Social studies Grade level(s): Grade 05, Grade 06, Grade 07 / Secondary 1, Grade 08 / Secondary 2, Grade 09 / Secondary 3, Grade 10 / Secondary 4, Grades 11 and 12 / Secondary 5 and CEGEP
• June 30, 2021

  The house the Bank of Canada built

  By: Graham Iddon

  
  

  

  The Bank of Canada head office is two structures: the stone cube on Wellington Street and the glass structure that it is nestled into. Both are significant architectural landmarks.

  Content type(s): Blog posts
• June 3, 2021

  Value is in the Eye of the Consumer

  By: Graham Iddon

  
  

  

  Supply and demand is part of the very bedrock of an economy. It's what generates the price of any product or service.

  Content type(s): Blog posts Subject(s): Economy, Financial literacy, Social studies Grade level(s): Grade 07 / Secondary 1, Grade 08 / Secondary 2, Grade 09 / Secondary 3, Grade 10 / Secondary 4, Grades 11 and 12 / Secondary 5 and CEGEP
• April 30, 2021

  Mishap on the dollar

  By: Graham Iddon

  
  

  

  An image of a river of logs floating behind Parliament Hill has long lived in Canadian collective memory thanks to a bank note, the Scenes of Canada $1 bill.

  Content type(s): Blog posts
• March 23, 2021

  The Last Smokestack

  By: Graham Iddon

  
  

  

  Putting an industrial facility on a bank note is not a casual decision. At the end of the 1960s, such places were earning a bad reputation for pollution. There was actually a good reason for this choice, but it wasn’t obvious to many Canadians.

  Content type(s): Blog posts
• February 26, 2021

  Playing with Economy

  By: Graham Iddon

  
  

  

  There might be only a handful of basic game formats, but there is an infinity of variations—a surprising number of which require the skills we need to manage our daily economic lives.

  Content type(s): Blog posts Subject(s): Economy, Financial literacy, Math, Social studies Grade level(s): Grade 03, Grade 04, Grade 05, Grade 06, Grade 07 / Secondary 1, Grade 08 / Secondary 2, Grade 09 / Secondary 3, Grade 10 / Secondary 4, Grades 11 and 12 / Secondary 5 and CEGEP
• January 4, 2021

  Economic Opportunity Costs

  By: Graham Iddon

  
  

  

  With his superpowers, Peter Parker would no doubt do a fabulous job of tiling his kitchen backsplash. But as Spider-Man, he has more valuable things to do with his time.

  Content type(s): Blog posts Subject(s): Economy, Financial literacy, Social studies Grade level(s): Grade 08 / Secondary 2, Grade 09 / Secondary 3, Grade 10 / Secondary 4, Grades 11 and 12 / Secondary 5 and CEGEP