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New Bremen fourth graders add pretzels to their reindeer food concoction.
NEW BREMEN - 'Twas the week before Christmas when all through the class, students were preparing for Santa, even bustling en masse. The reindeer food was made with tedious care, in hopes that fellow children would bring joy here and there.
This week, Tayler Young's fourth-grade students at New Bremen Elementary School are selling a delicious treat - edible "reindeer food" - that they made on Friday. Next, each of her three classes will donate the profit from their project to a specific charity.
Last week, the students assembled the reindeer food by mixing Cheerios, Chex Mix, M&M's and pretzels, coating them in white chocolate and then covering the mixture in sprinkles.
Students dig into a box of Cheerios.
To advertise the craft, students made flyers and issued reminders over the morning announcements.
By the end of this week, students will have finished selling their product for 75 cents a bag, and each class will total their gross revenue and subtract the cost of expenses. Each class then votes to donate the net profit to a specific charity.
As part of a unit, Young, who teaches fourth-grade reading, social studies and math, is educating her students on holiday financing and budgeting, tying in business practices like supply and demand, marketing, production and consumption, and the factors of production.
When she starts the project in November, she introduces her students to different businesses in town and teaches them about business practices; with that knowledge, they create a mock business and market it.
A fourth grader carefully measures a cup of Cheerios.
Reindeer food includes Cheerios, M&M's, pretzels, Chex, white chocolate and a dusting of sprinkles.
"Within social studies, we have entrepreneur standards, our economic standards," Young said. "We have to talk about going through the process of what a company would take in order to start something. The kids got to make their own business idea first. One kid made a haircut business (and another) kid did a pet shop. They got to go through and create their own factors of production based on what we've already learned and they got to advertise that business."
For example, if a student chooses to create a candy store, the land component would include the physical storefront, labor would include hiring employees to maintain the business and make the candy, capital includes candy ingredients and any kitchen equipment or machinery, and entrepreneurship includes the owner position.
"Each business needs to have each one of those four in order to be successful," Young said. "If we take one of those away, is the business going to be able to run successfully?"
New Bremen fourth graders stir their reindeer food concoction.
Young challenges her students to analyze the craft through the factors of production. Although the treat's ingredients are manufactured, meaning the kids didn't make the ingredients themselves, the ingredients are key to assembling the food - the product they will sell.
By understanding what it takes to operate and sustain a business, her students recognize the amount of effort and labor that goes into commerce.
Young recommends giving children "examples of those businesses and trying to get them to learn what those businesses do, whether they provide a product or a service," she said. "Thinking about all of the steps and all of the people who help that business in order to be successful really helps them understand how a whole business runs. My advice is to give them a visual (example) and make connections, especially within our local areas or any business in general."
Once they have a tangible example, they can recognize financial practices and the importance of budgeting, which is key when holiday shopping.
New Bremen teacher Tayler Young pours out the reindeer food onto a baking sheet to cool during a class on Friday.
The Ohio Department of Commerce has issued tips and tricks on talking to kids about financial literacy, especially during the holidays when gifts, food and travel arrangements are more expensive.
Parents or guardians can create a designated holiday money jar and place it in a common area, like the kitchen or living room, regularly adding to it, ODOC said. The practice reinforces the concept of delayed gratification while also emphasizing budgeting.
Amid budgeting, parents can consider having children create a list of who they are getting gifts for and how much they are willing to spend.
When children are making their holiday wishlist, ODOC recommends helping children understand the difference between wants and needs.
"Encourage them to make two lists this year - one with all their wishes and another narrowed down to their preferred items," information from the department reads. "This exercise mirrors the reality of adulthood, where we must distinguish between our wants, our needs and what we can afford.
ODOC also recommends gifting experiences and memories instead of physical items as children get older.
Implementing festive traditions, such as going caroling, having a hot cocoa movie night or driving and looking at Christmas lights, often makes a lasting impact.
Young echoed the sentiment and said she enjoyed seeing how excited her students were.
"I think they really started to get excited about it when they realized it was getting closer to happening," she said. "Friday, when we made the treat, they were really excited. My first class, they sold (Tuesday) morning, and right away, they went into their rooms and they unpacked and came over right away and grabbed their tray of food and their change bag. They remembered exactly (which) pod area they were going to sell. They were on it. It's fun. The kids loved it. I love it. It's something that creates a memory that lasts a lifetime."
