When summer gives you lemons, make lemonade…
Kickoff This Summer with Something Fresh and Sweet: Project-Based Learning (PBL)
Lemonade Stand: Start the summer by building a dynamic mindset with your little one through project-based learning (PBL). Planning educational summer activities for your kids should not be burdensome.
Thus, PBL offers kids real-world situations and helps them find solutions through inquiry and exploration, while simultaneously working on different areas of development through a long-term project. The trick is finding something your child is passionate about then running with it. Discover something that sparks their interests, and you will find an amazing opportunity for them to learn through engagement with a special summer project.
Symbolically, summer has not begun until you’ve had a lemonade on the street, and we all know our kids are the ones who make it sweet. Not only are lemonade stands adorable and fun, but they are also a great way to teach kids about many important life skills and lessons. Follow these simple steps to have a fun summer learning experience while initiating all four areas of development.
DAY 1: Brainstorm
Make a strategic plan by beginning to think about the following: theme, recipe, ingredients, prices, products, decorations, location, and event date. Today is all about ideas. You can talk about having different lemonade recipes such as kiwi lemonade, raspberry lemonade or even a fancy type like lemongrass lemonade. Start by creating a duty list and collecting things around the house to be used (jars, cups, colors, glue, scissors, decorations).
DAY 2: Build a lemonade stand
Today you will work on developing gross and fine motor skills by forming your own lemonade stand. Building it can be very simple. You can purchase a prefabricated cardboard stand or you can build your own out of an old nightstand or small table. Let your kids make different designs and decorate as they wish. They can use colors, scissors, markers and even paint to decorate their lemonade stand. Chalkboards are also a great way to post prices and decorate your stand. For summer 2017, we are loving flag banners and polka-dot straws.
DAY 3: Choose a recipe for lemonade
Today you will work on language development by selecting your favorite recipe and listing the different ingredients to be used. Create a shopping list; then take your kids grocery shopping. Back at home, have your children write the recipe step by step. Remember to help them spell each word by sounding out the letters. Make sure they’ve mastered the steps before you begin the preparations. And to ensure maximum quality, it’s always a good idea to test out your recipe before selling it to the public.
DAY 4:Building your lemonade business plan
Today you will work on your kids’ cognitive development and math skills. Review with your little ones their math skills and select selling prices for your products. You may practice more complex math concepts like fractions, divisions, graphics, etc. This is also a great time to teach your kids about sales, entrepreneurship skills and financial terms. Talk about profits and your selling price. Create your own cash register and remember to have some change handy just in case. If you do not want to use real money, you can design your bills to use as “pretend money” the day of the sale.
DAY 5: Communication is key
The last steps of your lemonade stand project will help your kids develop socially and emotionally by teaching them communication skills. Have your child dress up and use a cute apron. Today you will practice role-playing with your kids as salespersons and customers, and you can take turns and switch roles. This is the perfect opportunity to discuss manners and how to be a successful and respectful salesperson. Using polite phrases such as “thank you,” “please,” “good afternoon,” “have a great day” are all part of the learning experience. Take this opportunity to teach them how smiling is always key.
DAY 6:Giving back to your community
Remind your young apprentices how important it is to always give back to their community and talk to them about designating a percentage of what they will make to a charity or community organization. Have them create a poster that will show buyers which community organization they have selected while bringing awareness to their customers.
DAY 7: The big day
Finally, the big day is here. Send out invitations and make a kids’ playdate out of this important day. Invite family and friends over and have them enjoy the best lemonade they’ll have this summer! Take tons of pictures and videos to document your PBL. Remember: you can always change this PBL to a flower shop, candy shop, puppet show, bakery or anything that inspires your little ones.
Ultimately, one of the most important benefits of a PBL lemonade stand is spending valuable family time together and creating lifelong summer memories.
Haz clic para leer en Español: Cuando el verano te da limones, haz limonada
