Entrepreneurial Spirit

The boys were all excited about the prospect of lemonade stands, so we decided to celebrate the last day of school with a little bit of fundraising fun in the park.  We split the boys into three groups and while one group had fun with a circuit-training scavenger hunt type activity, the others manned two separate lemonade stands on opposite sides of the park.  As expected, it was the perfect day for it.  The weather was spectacular, but even better, the park was filled with people and families celebrating the last day of school.  We had the boys make posters, set up their tables, serve customers, make change, and more.  It was great practice for them.  The boys quickly sold out of lemonade and then had to work together to count up their money.  We didn’t make it too easy for them though, they had to deduct the costs and figure out their net earnings.  That involved some advanced math skills (a.k.a. borrowing) that our 7 year old boys weren’t quite ready for (especially on the afternoon after the last day of school), but they sure gave it a good try.  A little competition always helps things along.  Next task, what to do with that $17.74 they earned.  They had a good discussion, but agreed in the end to wait and decide later.