Mill Creek fourth-graders turn entrepreneurs to market saleable product

Fourth-graders at Mill Creek Elementary School learned about entrepreneurship in marketing their 4G Pocket Flyer. (CONTRIBUTED)

MADISON – Working an entrepreneur unit, Mill Creek Elementary School fourth-graders marketed and sold a product with help from a local university.

With their company, 4G Inc., students relied on business discussions and pricing analysis to sell the ‘4G Pocket Flyer.’ The nylon, folding Frisbee included a screen-printed logo and matching pouch. Flyers sold for $3.

The project was based on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) concepts. The six-week unit applied mathematical concepts to business entrepreneurship.

All fourth-graders participated with teachers Kayla Graham, Kylie Henriksen, Kim Pratt, Tammy Thorpe and Debra Weaver.

Kim W. Bell, assistant professor at Athens State University, and PTA president Pamela Matheney authored and taught the entrepreneur unit. They both have children at Mill Creek.

Mill Creek’s population “loved this product because it’s fun to play with indoors or outside and small enough to fit in pockets or backpacks,” Bell said. Teachers bought 4G Pocket Flyers for students at recess.

For marketing, students created poster-board advertisements, strategically placed throughout the school, Bell said. They wrote scripts and starred in commercials on Mill Creek’s “Morning Show.” They sent NotifyMe and other email messages.

The unit applied STEM principles and practically integrated Common Core elements. Students discussed a business plan, budgets, forecasting, supply and demand, customer-vendor relationships and geometric advertising.

In their “management of profit,” the fourth-graders bought classroom supplies and donated to the St. Jude Clinic at Huntsville Hospital.

Fourth-grader Emma Matheney “learned that being an entrepreneur isn’t easy, but it’s a lot of fun.” Jack Bell’s favorite aspect was “Production Day. We (saw) our hard work finally come together.”

Sydney Hur learned “you need to buy your needs first, save for your wants and give away money to help others.”

For Dayana Roque, the project’s best aspect “was doing the video to make the commercial.” Colin Loosier was proud to donate money to St. Jude.

“I learned how to save money and handle grumpy customers,” Shelby Dean Miller said. “If you always work hard, good things will come,” Victoria Tarver said.