Watch out Dragons, you could be getting a visit from some business savvy elementary students one day soon.
Grade 4 students at Queen Elizabeth Elementary school showed off their entrepreneurial prowess at a special young entrepreneurs fair at the school on Wednesday. The afternoon event was the culmination of two months of hard work by students and two keen teachers.
“It’s to have children explore the idea of business, making their own products, selling their products, and then we donate 10 per cent of whatever we make to an organization,” teacher Beth Minto told the Record.
Preparation for the fair started in early October when vice-principal Isabella Lam pitched the idea to Minto. The fair is part of a program called PowerPlay Young Entrepreneurs, which aims to empower young people with skills needed to help them succeed in the rapidly changing world.
Minto’s students had to come up with a product, a business plan and a marketing strategy. There was also an element of financial literacy built into the program.
“It’s been wonderful. It’s really neat because it touches on a lot of the core competencies of the new curriculum as well and it teaches them about business,” she said.
“The kids had to take a loan out from their parents, so, whatever they make, they have to pay their parents back and then donate some of the profits to an organization.”
Students chose the New Westminster animal shelter as their sponsored charity and were planning to make their donation in person in the new year, according to Minto.
Items for sale at the fair included slime, bracelets, fluffy flippables, necklaces, perler bead keychains, Christmas cards, ornaments, origami and even a set of those bean-filled neck warmers you can warm up in the microwave.
“They have loved it. They have absolutely loved it,” Minto said about the response from her students.
Lam agreed.
This was her second time bringing a PowerPlay program to a school. Last year she helped bring the program to the school she worked at in Surrey.
“It’s hard not to compare, but I’ve done this last year, and I had the older kids – I had grades 6 and 7 – and they’re only Grade 4s,” she said.
“I am blown away. It exceeded my expectations.”
