A Community Service Project for Grades 4 and 5

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Purpose:

To teach 4th and 5th graders that profit in a business can be of service to a community.

Vocabulary:

Profit, business, loans, resources, goods, investment, total cost, human resources, loss, service

Project:

To start and operate a cookie business in which the profit would be given to a local organization serving homeless people.

Process:

Before we began the actual businesses, the two classes met together to discuss what was involved in starting and maintaining a business. We talked about what was the purpose of a business or economic venture, how to start a business, what was involved in running a business, and what the terms investment, resources, profit, etc. mean in a business venture. We also talked about what profits were used for – increasing and developing a business, re-investment, etc. We talked about non-profit businesses and services. We decided that our business venture would be set up to contribute to a non-profit organization that reached out to the homeless in our community, called Care 66.

1. The two classes were organized into 4 groups of 10 or 11. Each “business” elected a manager and an assistant manager and identified certain jobs necessary to run this kind of business.
2. Each cookie business named their company and decided which product (type of cookie) they wished to produce and market. They were then given the recipe.
3. After reading the recipe of the cookie of their choice, the group decided which ingredients were needed for their particular cookie and how much was needed.
4. When the list of ingredients was complete, they were assigned as homework to price the items needed. The students could do this with the help of a parent at a local grocery store.
5. We totaled up the amount of money all the ingredients cost (for all four companies) and applied for a loan from our class funds. Our principal acted as the loan officer. We filled out an application and turned it over to him.
6. I bought all the ingredients and brought them to school.
7. We had four places for the four groups to go to do the actual baking at school. Four mothers and four volunteers came to help, two adults per group. Each company measured, mixed, kneaded, molded and baked their product.
8. Each company was responsible for designing a sign with the company name on it as well as designing signs to advertise their product.
9. We set two days after the baking to sell the cookies to the rest of the elementary school. The price was set at $.25 per cookie. Each company set up their own store or booth in the school’s great room.
10. After all the money was totaled, we had to pay back the loan. Two members of the class were in charge of returning the borrowed money to the bank.
11. The total profit was $77.00. 12. Project/group evaluation.