Economics for Kids - Four Main Types of Economic Systems - Games, Activities, Free Use K-12 Lesson Plans for Teachers - FREE Lesson Plans, PowerPoints, Games, Activities (K-12)

For Kids:

In the world, there are four main types of economic systems.

A traditional (ancient) economic system focuses exclusively on goods and services that are directly related to its beliefs and traditions. It relies on individuals and does not show much if any specialization. This is the most basic and ancient type of economy.
A command economic system is characterized by a dominant centralized power, usually a government, that controls a large part of economic activity. If the government is benevolent, fine, but if it is not, a command economic system can create problems for the people under this system.
A market economic system, also known as capitalism, relies on free markets and does not allow any government involvement. There are NO market economies in the world today. All economies have some government regulations, some more than others.
A mixed economic system is any mixture of a market and a command economic system. This is the system used by most western countries today. In this system, both private companies and the country's government work together to achieve success of their economic mix. The extent of government involvement and control can vary greatly from one country to another.

Just so you know: If you take an online quiz, sometimes you will find, according to the quiz, that the US has a market economic system. That is wrong. Most western countries, including the United States, have a mixed economic system. But many people refer to our economic system as a market or capitalistic system anyway.