What are NFTs or Non Fungible Tokens? A Simple Explanation for Kids and Beginners

What are NFTs or Non-Fungible Tokens? Finance 101: Easy Peasy Finance for Kids and Beginners

---

Introduction to NFTs for Kids and Teens

This video explains the concept of Non Fungible Tokens in a simple, concise way for kids and beginners. It could be used by kids & teens to learn about NFTs, or used as a money & personal finance resource by parents and teachers as part of a Financial Literacy course or K-12 curriculum.

Suitable for students from grade levels:

• Elementary School
• Middle School
• High School

The topics covered are:

• What is an NFT
• Possibility of copying the underlying digital asset
• Price / cost of NFTs
• How are NFTs created
• How are NFTs traded
• Investing in NFTs

---

What are NFTs?

NFTs (or non-fungible tokens) are unique digital tokens that serve as proof of ownership of an asset, and cannot be replicated.

NFTs use blockchain technology, which acts as a digital record of all transactions related to the NFT on a vast network of computers.

While NFTs can be used to represent physical assets, like property or artwork, the majority of NFTs represent collectible digital assets like digital artwork, music, photos, videos, or even virtual plots of land in video games! 

Can’t the underlying digital assets be copied?

Yes, they certainly can be. In fact, a lot of times the artist retains the copyright of the original asset, which allows them to legally reproduce it.

NFTs represent ownership of the “original ” asset, even if copies are made in the future.

How much do NFTs cost?

Each NFT is unique, so they all have different values. Like with any asset, its price is determined by demand and supply.

Since there is only one of each NFT, the scarcity, combined with the trend towards digital collectibles, is resulting in some of them being sold for a lot of money.

For example, an NFT for a picture of a cat was sold by Paris Hilton for around $17,000. The most expensive NFT so far is a piece of digital art sold for over sixty nine million dollars.

How are NFTs created?

If you want to create an NFT, you have to first choose a specific blockchain technology, and upload your content to that blockchain.

Then, you select the NFT marketplace to list your NFT on, since NFTs can only be bought and sold on specialized NFT marketplaces.

You can even add a royalty or commission to your NFT, which would result in a payment to you every time your NFT changes hands.

How are NFTs bought & sold?

In order to buy or sell an NFT, you need a digital wallet specific to that marketplace, which needs to be loaded with the cryptocurrency accepted at that marketplace.

You need to keep in mind that many marketplaces charge exorbitant fees for trading NFTs, like currency conversion fee, closing fee, and gas fee, which is the charge for the energy needed to complete the NFT transaction.

Are NFTs a good investment?

One big downside of NFTs is the huge environmental impact they have due to the amount of energy consumed for every single transaction.

But there are many more reasons why NFTs are not a good investment.

Check out “7 Reasons Why You Should Absolutely Avoid Investing in NFTs” for more.

---

Download Transcript: Ideal for Use by Teachers in their Lesson Plan to Teach Kids & Teens

---

Podcast: What are NFTs or Non Fungible Tokens