Lemonade to Leadership - Student Book

Entrepreneurial skills are useful far beyond the limits of business and money-making ventures. As the title of this course indicates, the responsibility and creativity needed to start one's own business often translate to good leadership skills in general. Bonnie Drew leads kids through the essentials of business planning and management with the goal of making them productive members of society and of the marketplace.

How Does This Work?

Lemonade to Leadership is an entrepreneurial course for grades 3-8 designed to walk students through the process of starting, managing and expanding their own business. It begins with a multiple-choice test to gauge their knowledge of business concepts included in the teacher's manual.

This is a teacher-led program. All lesson content is included in the teacher's manual, and the student book is a consumable workbook used to complete written assignments. Lessons are scripted, with objectives and discussion questions/responses. Teachers present the material and students do the written work.

The knowledge isn't only theoretical. Students actually come up with ideas for their own business, learn how to acquire funds and handle expenses, etc. by doing it themselves. Each lesson has a vocabulary of business terms for students to learn in addition to the objectives, so the knowledge is actually based in technical business principles not simply common sense ideas.

At the end of the course students take the quiz again that they took at the beginning. By comparing both scores you can objectively determine how much your student has learned and, if necessary, backtrack some concepts they still haven't grasped thoroughly.

If you're looking for a lightning introduction to business and economics you could get through this program in a matter of weeks by eliminating the activities and ignoring the supplemental exercises, or you can stretch it out as long as you want by paying special attention to all aspects of the curriculum. Perhaps the best approach is to move at a steady pace and complete everything in one semester.

Our Honest Opinion:

Because this is a business/practical economics introduction for elementary and middle school students, it can be used as an excellent prep course before a more in-depth study of economics. The hands-on nature of many of the activities adds texture to a subject often made cumbersome by a purely theoretical approach. If your students want more to chew on you could have them read Common Sense Business for Kids or Capitalism for Kids, both from Bluestocking Press.