NEW BRUNSWICK, New Jersey - On the eve of Mother's Day, students at Woodrow Wilson School didn't have to trek to crowded shopping malls to find gifts for their moms. Thanks to an enterprising class of first-graders, they could pick up a fresh carnation bouquet on their way home from school.
Customer convenience is just one factor that these savvy young marketers took into account when drawing up their business plan. Teacher Marianna Sandor launched the project as a way to give her students some real-life business experience and show them how technology is used in a variety of careers.
The class visited bank tellers' booths to see technology and computers
First, the six- and seven-year-olds conducted market analysis. "The 'market' is defined as the students in our school," Sandor explains. "Students visited classrooms to determine the number of children who would be willing to buy a flower for $3 at a Mother's Day sale." Woodrow Wilson, recognized for excellence as a national Blue Ribbon School, enrolls about 450 racially diverse students in a Central New Jersey neighborhood known as Rutgers Village. Sandor's students speak a variety of languages at home, including Spanish, Arabic, and an Indian dialect.
Technology played a role through every stage of the project, beginning with the spreadsheets that students created to analyze their market survey data. "They knew we were ordering 200 flowers, so they realized that anticipated sales should exceed that number," Sandor explains.
Armed with a basic business plan, students next made an appointment at a local bank. "They learn about interest and collateral. They realize that the bank does not want to be stuck with 200 wilting flowers," the teacher explains, "so they looked for something that can be used as collateral." Students formed a committee and pitched their principal for permission to use one of the five classroom computers as collateral. (He gave them the go-ahead, but cautioned—in jest—that their teacher might be fired if the bank seized the computer.)
Next, students embarked on an ambitious advertising campaign. Technology plays a big role, as students used classroom computers and the school's networked computer lab to produce public-address announcements, colorful posters, and flyers to send home. Students used a spreadsheet to keep track of how many flyers were to be distributed to each homeroom.
Two days before sale day, students returned to the bank. As Sandor explains: "They elected two representatives to sign the loan for the class. The loan officer interviewed the whole class. When they answered his questions successfully, the $300 business loan was given. The two representatives signed the forms, and the entire class was warned of the consequences of not repaying. The children cheered when interest was waived." (Unknown to the children, funds to cover the bank "loan" really came from a check written by their teacher.)
Once the paperwork was done, the children toured the bank. "They got to go behind the tellers' cages and see the use of technology and computers. The manager opened up the ATM and showed the children how this works. The children watched the video monitors that record activity in the bank. They were shown the digital money counter and counted out $10,000." They even got to enter the vault, after learning about the safety deposit boxes and the time locks on the doors. Throughout their bank tour, Sandor says, "they are aware of career possibilities in banking, the use of technology, and the application of math skills." When they left, each student received a calculator.
The day before the big sale, a parent used the $300 "loan" to pick up the order for 200 carnations in assorted colors, plus greens and sleeves, that students faxed ahead to a local flower shop. From their calculations, students knew that the wholesale cost was $1.50 for each bouquet. (They also knew that a retail price of $3 meant a 100 percent mark-up). As they assembled individual bouquets and sorted them by color, they took great care not to waste any flowers. "They knew each is worth money to them," notes Sandor.
On sale day, children took their assigned positions as vendors, stock persons, and runners. "As money is collected, it is counted and a calculator is used to tally the total," Sandor said. "When $300 was collected, the children breathed a sigh of relief and faxed the bank that they could repay the loan." Last May, sales were so brisk that students had to restock supplies mid-day. We sold out and had satisfied all potential customers by the end of the day. When students assured their principal that the classroom computer would not be repossessed by the bank," says Sandor, "he told them he was very disappointed he could not fire me!"
Next, students used their calculators to determine profits. Sandor reviews the numbers: "Our gross income was $649. We had to repay the $300 loan, which left a profit of $349." The children decided to dedicate some of their profits to a scholarship fund. "We called the New Brunswick High School guidance department, and they sent over applications for our First Grade Entrepreneurs' Award," Sandor relates. Students read the applications and selected a winner. The recipient visited the class in person, where first-graders presented him with graduation cards and a banner they made using classroom computers.
That wasn't the end of their philanthropy. Students decided to spruce up the front of the school with new plants, which they selected online. Cost for two rhododendrons: $65. That left $184—enough for lunch at a nearby Hilton Hotel. "Of course," says Sandor, "we invited our bankers to join us." (They also worked up a budget. Assuming lunch would run $5 a head, they figured out they'd have just enough left for a picnic on the last day of school.) And at the hotel, students were also primed to keep their eyes open for more technology—such as the computerized waterfall that spills over a stairway, to the delight of even the savviest first-graders.
For a more detailed look at the lesson plans and resources for "Grow a Business" see the unit plan, http://educate.intel.com/en/ThinkingTools/VisualRanking/ProjectExamples/UnitPlans/GrowABusiness/VR_UnitPlans1.htm .