fbpx

KidsKonnect

Stock Market Facts & Worksheets

A stock market, also known as share market or equity market, is the aggregation of buyers and sellers of shares or stocks which represents public or private ownership claims.

Search for Worksheets

Worksheets /Math /Arithmetic /Stock Market Facts & Worksheets
Premium
Stock Market Worksheets
Not ready to purchase a subscription? Click to download the free sample version   Download sample

A stock market, also known as share market or equity market, is the aggregation of buyers and sellers of shares or stocks which represents public or private ownership claims.

See the fact file below for more information on the stock market or alternatively, you can download our 20-page Stock Market worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

  • The earliest example of brokerage can be traced back to the 1100s in France with the use of courretiers de change who managed agricultural debts on behalf of banks. These first brokers traded debts.
  • In 1409, a group of commodity traders, who met in the house of Van der Beurse at Antwerp, was named Brugse Beurse.
  • In the mid-13th century, bankers in Venice began to trade government securities. It was soon followed by the Italian cities of Pisa, Genoa, Verona, and Florence. Due to being independent states, these cities became the first to sell shares on the stock market.
  • In 1602, the Dutch East India Company was the first joint-stock entity to be established. The nature of a joint-stock company was to allow shareholders to own a proportion of the business depending on the shares.
  • The East India Company was first named as the Governor and Company of Merchants of London, trading with the East Indies.
  • After the exploration and discovery of the wealth in the East Indies, financiers began to look for ways to diminish the risk of piracy. One of the ways to mitigate such risk was to invest in several voyages instead of only one. This resulted in investors purchasing shares in multiple voyages or companies.
  • Early stocks were written on paper, while investors did trading in coffee shops.
  • In 1801, the London Stock Exchange was created, but companies were not allowed to issue shares until 1825 due to lack of regulations on how to distinguish legitimate and illegitimate companies.
  • The Philadelphia Stock Ex- change was the first stock exchange in the U.S. By 1817, the New York Stock Exchange was established.
  • Since then major stock markets were created in Switzerland, Japan, Canada, Iraq, and other cities.
  • The London Stock Exchange dominated Europe, while the New York Stock Exchange took over the United States and the world.

THE WALL STREET CRASH

  • From the New York Stock and Exchange Board in 1817, the New York Stock Exchange adopted its name in 1863.
  • After the War of 1812, commercial activity increased with the demand for railroad stocks.
  • Moreover, the Civil War between 1861 and 1865 also provided capital for America’s industrialization.
  • In 1929, the stock market crash signaled the Great Depression, which led to heavy losses and unemployment for many Americans.
  • Also known as Black Tuesday, on October 29, 1929, billions of dollars were lost on Wall Street alone. This stock market crash was said to be the main reason behind the Great Depression.
  • The Great Depression, which began in 1929 and lasted until 1939, was the longest-lasting economic depression in history.
  • During the Roaring Twenties, prior to the Great Depression, the United States reached great economic success. However, after rapid expansion and wild speculation, stock prices began to fall. On October 24, also known as Black Thursday, investors created a panic, while bankers attempted to stabilize the market.
  • It was followed by Black Monday and finally Black Tuesday when the stock market finally collapsed. About 16,410,030 shares were traded in a single day.
  • After ten years of the Great Depression, the U.S. economy only made a turn around in 1939, when World War II broke out. Ironically, the war revitalized American industry.

BASIC STOCK MARKET TERMINOLOGY

  • A stock represents the company’s ownership, also known as shares or equity.
  • If the stock market is on a downward trend, it means that stock prices are falling. This is called a Bear Market. Conversely, when stock prices increase, investors call it a Bull Market.
  • A broker is a person who buys or sells an investment in exchange for a commission.
  • A stock exchange is a place where investments are traded. Today, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and the Nasdaq dominate the United States.
  • During the Roaring Twenties, many Americans bought stocks in a margin which greatly affected their economic stability during the Great Depression. Buying at the margin means that the money used to buy stocks came from loans. Margin defines the difference between the amount of the loan and the price of the securities bought.
  • Penny stocks, also known as pink sheets, refers to over-the-counter stocks (stocks traded at $5 per share or less).

Stock Market Worksheets

This is a fantastic bundle which includes everything you need to know about the stock market across 20 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use Stock Market worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about a stock market, also known as share market or equity market, which is the aggregation of buyers and sellers of shares or stocks which represents public or private ownership claims.

Complete List Of Included Worksheets

  • Stock Market Facts
  • History of the Stock Market
  • Stock Glossary
  • Stock Knowledge
  • The Great Depression
  • Buy or Sell?
  • Top Ten in Stocks
  • Stocks Gains and Risks
  • Crash to Depression
  • Boom and Bust
  • In the News

Link/cite this page

If you reference any of the content on this page on your own website, please use the code below to cite this page as the original source.

Link will appear as Stock Market Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, September 30, 2019

Use With Any Curriculum

These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

Related Resources