I'm really excited about our current sponsor, Acorns Early, because it helps kids and families

learn to manage their money at an early age, and also to invest it.

So I thought it would be fun to focus this episode on how money works and how you can grow it.

Today we're going to learn about a man who used hard work, smart thinking, and a little bit

of money to build

something huge. His name was Levi Strauss. Levi Strauss didn't start out rich or famous. He was born in

1829 in Germany, and when he was a young man, he moved to the United States with his family to find a better

life. At first, he didn't have United States with his family to find a better life.

At first he didn't have much. He worked hard helping his brothers run a small dry goods business,

which means they sold clothes, fabrics, and supplies. Levi was careful with his money.

He didn't waste it. He saved it and thought about how to use it wisely.

Then something big happened.

In 1849, gold was discovered in California, and thousands of people rushed there, hoping

to strike it rich.

This was called the gold rush.

But Levi didn't go looking for gold.

Instead, he had a different idea. He realized that all those

gold miners needed supplies, things like tools, clothes, and strong fabric. Levi saw an opportunity.

Instead of chasing gold, he decided to sell to the people who were. He moved to San Francisco

and opened a small shop selling goods to miners.

One of the most important things he sold was a tough kind of fabric called denim.

Miners needed pants that wouldn't tear while they worked, so Levi, along with a tailor named

...