Brock University: Grade 4 Students Compete for Sweet Taste of Business Success

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade — and a profit.

That’s what 75 energetic Grade 4 students hope to do when they transform Brock University’s Jubilee Court into a hub for their carefully crafted lemonade stands next week.

As part of the Goodman Lemonade program, students from Pine Grove, Stevensville and Garrison Road Public Schools will be on the lookout for thirsty customers to sell their product to on Thursday, June 6 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Organized by Brock University’s Goodman School of Business, the program squeezes business skills into Grade 4 classrooms in Niagara.

Goodman Lemonade has been teaching Niagara elementary students the basics of building a for-profit business since 2017.

“We want students to start thinking about entrepreneurship as a career possibility early, and this program is designed to help make sure that their first business venture is a positive experience,” said Lauren Smith, Goodman’s Student Leadership Co-ordinator.

The program includes classroom visits leading up to the sale date and is designed to tie into the Grade 4 curriculum and reinforce the concepts students learned in class this year.

“The Goodman Lemonade program has provided a real-world context for students to apply financial literacy and mathematical modelling skills,” says Stevensville Public School teacher Sarah Feduck. “Students deepened their learning about unit rate, proportions and computations. The kids are so excited to put their learning to the test to see how they can effectively plan, market and sell their product.”

FirstOntario Credit Union has partnered with Brock to help students of all ages build financial literacy skills through the development of innovative, student-centred programming. This support has helped develop the Goodman Lemonade program among other initiatives.

“This partnership supports our focus on connecting with students and helping to build important financial literacy skills in a fun, practical way, something that we believe is extremely important for young people,” said Joanne Battaglia, Senior Vice-President, Marketing, Communications and Community Partnerships, FirstOntario Credit Union. “This is a great way to connect with youth and community leaders such as Brock and the Goodman Lemonade program and to see students get excited about entrepreneurship.”

Attendees are asked to bring change and small bills for their lemonade purchases.

Goodman Lemonade details:

• Who: 75 Grade 4 students from Pine Grove, Stevensville and Garrison Road Public Schools.
• What: Teams of students competing for the top lemonade sales.
• When: Thursday, June 6 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• Where: Jubilee Court at Brock University (free parking is available in Lot 1, 2 or 3)