After you complete this course you will be able to understand and evaluate financial statements. One of the ways we achieve that is through a series of discussion boards where we ask you to provide accounting explanations in your own words to your friend who is running her own business. You may go to sources beyond the currently covered chapter to develop your answers. Please provide your comments in your own words as an initial post and then comment to at least two other students about their post. Anne Marie is the owner of Annes Beauty Salon, Inc. Her accountant has prepared financial statements for the year 20XX for her business. She doesn't like to ask him questions about it. She would rather ask you as you are her friend and since she knows that you are taking an accounting course, she asks you the following questions:

1. My accountant told me that the balance sheet shows assets = liabilities plus equity. What does that mean?
2. What is equity?
3. Why are there four different financial statements? Why cant they put all this information into one statement?
4. I dont understand what the Statement of Retained Earnings is all about. What is retained earnings?
5. She also asked about dividends. What are they? Will they increase expenses?