The Bitcoin network is made up of thousands of computers around the world that work together. These computers (called "nodes") talk to each other and make sure everyone follows the rules and no one cheats.

Imagine if instead of having one teacher in your classroom, every student had a complete copy of all the rules and everyone worked together to make sure the rules were followed. That's kind of how the Bitcoin network works!

Each computer in the Bitcoin network (called a "node") has a complete copy of the blockchain - that special notebook we learned about that records all Bitcoin transactions. When someone makes a new transaction, it gets sent to all these computers, and they all check to make sure it follows the rules.

The really cool thing about the Bitcoin network is that it has no boss or central control point. No single person or company is in charge. Instead, all these computers around the world work together by following the same set of rules.

This makes Bitcoin very different from most other computer systems and is one reason why it's so special. Because there's no central control point, Bitcoin is very hard to shut down. Even if some computers in the network stop working, the rest keep going!

Anyone with a computer and internet connection can run a Bitcoin node and be part of this global network. The more people who run nodes, the stronger and more secure the Bitcoin network becomes!