Grade 6 and 7 students at Qualicum Beach Elementary School went into business Tuesday. And the Manna Homeless Society will cash in.
The students hosted their “somewhat” annual World Market in the school gymnasium June 27, offering products ranging from fingernail painting to plants to treats — and more treats — to wrap up a six-week curriculum on financial literacy, teacher Carrie Frampton said.
Funds raised at each of the 18 “storefronts” in the gym will be donated to the Manna Homeless Society.
“One of the things they have to do is identify a local issue or cause,” said Frampton, who said previous beneficiaries of the market include B.C. Children’s Hospital, Haiti earthquake victims and the Canadian Cancer Society. “A couple of the classes have already been donating to Manna throughout the year, making sling bags with hygiene products for women, and making scarves and hats in the winter.”
Frampton and fellow grade 6 and 7 teachers Lynne Murray and Paul Wunderlich directed the 75 students who took part in the market, with help from a substantial number of parent volunteers.
“We had so many parents come; that was awesome,” said Frampton.
As part of their preparation for the World Market, students had to create business plans and income projections, and use applied design to make products, branding and the appearance of their “shops” for the day.
Items produced to sell to fellow students, faculty, staff and support workers at the school were paid for by the students and constituted their own donations to Manna.
While most of the students seemed to go with edible products — there were no fewer than three shops dedicated to ice cream — some of the stores boasted names like Sunset Souvenirs, Soul Art, The Slime Shop, Pet Mart, Wasteland Surplus and Nailed, a combination fingernail art and frappucino shop.
“I thought doing nails would be a good business,” said Zophia Hayes, who was joined by partner Emily Scarpino. “I’ve done nails for other people before.”
The two Grade 7 students were both operating a business for the first time, and said they thought the day went well as they cleaned up following the market. Asked if they learned anything they hadn’t expected about running a business, the partners were quick to respond.
“I was surprised by how many people came out,” said Hayes.
“I was surprised how many boys let me paint their nails,” added Scarpino. “A lot of my friends came and let me pick out pink and purple for them.”