Summertime is here, Biz Kid! For some of you, it’s time to dust off your lemonade stand. For others, a chance to make some extra cash with a summer job. And for a few, perhaps this is your chance to put action to your daydreams and finally attack that business plan.
Whatever your summer plans entail, take us along. We have tools, games, and resources to keep you motivated, inspired, and equipped until the school bell rings again.
Here are just a few of our summer-ready resources, with explainer videos to give you the 411.
Too much sun today? Keep your lemonade stand going indoors! Our Dollar-a-Glass Game–and some aloe–will have you back in the stand and smarter than ever.
You made it, teachers! For many parts of the country, Mid-May represents the final few weeks of class. For students, this is synonymous with restlessness, which poses a real challenge to educators. How can you continue to impart knowledge to students who want nothing to do with sitting still? How can you capture the attention of kids already occupied with daydreams of summer trips, lemonade stands, and cannon balls into the neighborhood swimming pool?
Well, we have an idea. We partnered wth the Horizon Credit Union to create an interactive, dynamic, and engaging activity for schools called the Biz Kid$ Piggy Bank Hunt. The game uses Biz Kid$ clips, worksheets, and activities to guide students through an adventure in financial literacy.
Here’s the overview:
The Piggy Bank Treasure Hunt has students solving clues over a six-week period, to find the Biz Pig, hidden in a secret location on school grounds. Students solve clues related to financial literacy, and view online video clips from the Biz Kid$ TV series, a national public TV series that teaches kids about money and business. Together, a lead educator and a credit union representative collaborate to execute this plan, by hiding the clues and the Biz Pig. The first student to successfully complete all of the steps in the treasure hunt and and the Biz Pig will be awarded a prize.
Ready to download the Piggy Bank Hunt activity packet? It’s free, and it’s available from our website here.
Want to learn more? Check out our “Did You Know?” video below!
When the founder of Chobani yogurt finally saw his long-standing dream come true last week, this is what it looked like: others got rich.
Yes, the CEO of one of the world’s largest yogurt brands had been planning for years to reward his employees with a stake in the company. Chobani will become a publicly traded company this year, and before it does, the company’s employees will share a 10% stake.
Giving stock to employees is just one of many ways that entrepreneurs can create value for the people around them. Biz Kids like you have used their businesses to…
Protect the environment:
Give back to the community:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8euVDKIAs2E
You, too, can start something that makes a difference. Go do it!
Oh, and to those Chobani employees: you may want to brush up on our episode, “What to do with a Windall.”
When Alina Morse was seven years old, she had a sweet tooth. But she also knew that sweets weren’t good for that sweet tooth. That is, until she invented the Zollipop.
Zollipops are made with two different kinds of sweeteners, each selected for how they neutralize acid that result from eating and cause tooth decay. Simply put, Alina’s Zollipops prevent tooth decay rather than promote it. Now that’s innovation.
Three years later, Alina is an older and wiser ten-year-old who is reaping the benefits of her smart idea and savvy marketing. Last month, her product was served at the White House Easter Egg Roll, of all places. Oh, it was also the only candy served.
Her sweet success didn’t come easy. Her entrepreneurial journey has been one of risks, research, and generous giving.
You can read more about her $7,500 loan—and a call from Michelle Obama—in People Magazine.
Debt. Is it good or bad? Useful or evil? That depends on who you ask. Some will call it a tool. Others, a trap.
Our episode, Debt: “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly,” raised that very question. One clip from our episode follows a determined DJ who conquered credit card debt once and for all:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7CGUwTIoL4
One thing’s for sure: large amounts of debt can be life-changing. It’s estimated that 40 million Americans have student loan debt. Forty. Million.
Among the horror stories of overwhelming, endless payments to student loan and credit card vendors shine a few hopeful ones. With a littlelot of perseverance and self-control, some deeply indebted grads have conquered their debt at a speed that is impressive (to say the least).
Kristen Seaton has one such story. When she graduated from college, she did so dragging $67,000 in student loan bills behind her. Most student loan repayment plans would have suggested she pay off the loans in a matter of decades. She did it in two years.
Her story is one of reducing expenses drastically (her car cost just $300) and calling in accountability. Today she’s a (grown up) Biz Kid, running her own business out of a home she owns. You can read more about her inspiring story here.
She’s not alone. When Jared MacIlvaine got married at the age of 25, he and his wife had a combined $72,500 in student debt. 20 months later, it was gone. He turned his rollercoaster of a journey into a free eBook. His hope is that others will be inspired to tackle their fears and pay off their debt.
These stories aren’t just entertainment. They’re stories of what is possible when people get determined and get creative.
Are you an educator looking for an engaging way to teach your students about debt? Our free lesson plans were created with you in mind. We paired our episode, “Debt: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly,” with lesson plans mapped to state and national standards. Download them today for free.
So what’s your story of paying off loans? We’d love to hear it in the comments section below.
This week, Biz Kid$ crossed a very exciting milestone. The Emmy-winning public television series launched a new platform: print!
“$100 to $1,000,000: Earn! Save! Invest!”is a comprehensive guide for kids to the basics of earning, saving, spending, and investing money.
Co-Authors James McKenna and Jeannine Glista, executive producers of the Biz Kid$ series, are entrepreneurs in their own right. Not only have they launched television series that went on to win national Emmy Awards, it turns out they both had paper routes as kids, too!
They sat down for a Q&A to discuss financial literacy, entrepreneurship, and their new book.
Q: What was your first job?
McKenna: My first real job was working at a gas station when I was 15. I had a paper route before that. Although a tough job, working at the gas station was one of the best learning experiences I could have had. For one thing, it taught me how to make change!
Glista: I had a newspaper route when I was 12. I also picked cherries.
Q: What did you think you wanted to be when you were in middle school?
McKenna: I was a nerd in middle school, bullied almost on a daily basis. I could not wait to get out of there. One day a teacher mentioned that there was a new radio station starting at the high school across the street and I could learn to be a DJ. That radio station changed my life! I was introduced to the world of television from there. It’s very hard to know what you’re going to do for the rest of your life when you’re in middle school. Don’t worry. Watch our Biz Kid$ episode on Hidden Careers and you’ll see there is a world of great things to do out there. I hope you find your perfect career, like I did.
Glista: Apparently I told everyone I was going to be an ‘international representative’.
Q: If you could switch jobs with one of the Biz Kids you’ve profiled, which would it be?
McKenna: I have the best job. I get to do stories on Biz Kid$. Although, some of those Biz Kid$ have amazing careers. And I’m sure some of them have made far more money than I have. At a far younger age!
Glista: I’d switch jobs with The Gothard Sisters, who sing and perform Celtic dancing. Their music is so moving, and I love their costumes! And they make money following their passion.
Q: If you made what you do now when you were 12, how would you have spent/saved/invested it?
McKenna: Good question. Turns out, no matter how much money you make, there are only three things you can do with it: SPEND, SAVE and SHARE. Spending money is easy! Learning to save it? That would be the hardest thing to do if I was 12 years old and making the billions and billions of dollars that I do now. Okay, maybe not billions of dollars, but you get the idea. Even when I was young, I knew how great it felt to have money in a savings account. It gives you some power when you want to buy something and your folks tell you they won’t pay for it. Next, I’d talk to a real financial adviser about moving some of that money into good quality investments. I said a real financial adviser. Not your Uncle Ralph, with his “oil well deal that can’t lose!” I’m talking a real professional who does this for a living. Last, I’d SHARE, or donate some money to those less fortunate. So, maybe I’d spend 20% of it, save 60% of it and share 30%. Wait, that’s 110%. Hmm, I must adjust…
Glista: I would have saved most of it, and bought a property in Vancouver, BC (hindsight is 20/20).
Q: What’s the biggest reason kids don’t follow through with the savings/investing goals?
Glista: Kids don’t understand the power of compound interest and how it works. That needs to be brought to their attention because small amounts saved now can make a huge difference later. And these days, kids are more interested in their electronics than getting out there and making some money.
Q: You’ve just launched a gorgeous book, “How to Turn $100 into $1,000,000.” What can readers expect? Will Biz Kid$ viewers see any familiar elements?
Glista: The book is written in a very entertaining tone and style that stands out from other books in the same category. The content reflects various episodes that have been produced, and includes some stories of young entrepreneurs. What really differentiates the book from the TV series is that it the offers a very structured, sequential roadmap for kids to follow that leads them to financial independence. The series covers all these topics but not in a sequential order.
Q: If you had to choose a single tip from the book to impart to kids, which would it be?
Glista: Save early and save often. That number one thing will make all the difference in your life.
Order “$100 to $1,000,000” today from your favorite bookseller:
For many kids, the lemonade stand is a milestone. It’s Ground Zero for entrepreneurship, a gateway to a life of enterprise.
Ask a room full of successful entrepreneurs to describe their first business ventures, and you’re likely to hear story after story of lemon-flavored summertime sales.
In the town of Broomfield, Colorado, 8-year-old Jack Bonneau was set to be among them, until he dreamed even bigger. Instead of running just one lemonade stand, Jack launched an entire chain with the help of a $5000 loan. His story just made The New York Times.
Meanwhile in Austin, Texas, 11-year-old Mikaila Ulmer is doing some big, lemony business of her own. The Biz Girl received an old 1940’s lemonade recipe from her grandmother that uses local honey and flaxseed as key ingredients. Can you guess what happened next? Whole Foods agreed to sell her lemonade in 55 stores across the country. Now that’s lemonade at scale.
What’s your best lemonade stand story, Biz Kid? Share your tips, tricks, and grand visions in the comments below.
And want to give your own lemonade-selling skills a test without leaving your computer? You’re in luck! Our Dollar-a-Glass game is waiting for you. All the (pretend) money-making fun of a lemonade stand without the sticky hands! Play it today.
When it comes to dinnertime conversations, some topics are easier to entertain than others. We’ve all experienced a shrug or mumble in response to a question about our kids’ days from time to time.
But when it comes to topics of money, the bigger challenge can be knowing where to start.
That’s why we’ve put together a collection of activities for families like yours to start conversations about spending, saving, debt, and even entrepreneurship. The best part? They’re all FREE!
Here’s how to access our family activity resources:
1. Visit the “Lesson Plans” section of BizKids.com
Did you know that Biz Kid$ has a robust collection of FREE resources in Spanish? We do!
We’ve even prepared a “Did you Know?” video to tell you all about them:
Finding them on our site is simple.
1. Click on “Lesson Plans” at the top of the page.
2. Choose an episode.
2. If available, the Spanish-language lesson plan will appear. Just click to download!
How about an example. Here’s the first page of our lesson plan from our episode, “How to Achieve Your Financial Goals.” Or, we should say, “Cómo Lograr sus Objetivos Financieros!”
We all want to change the world. Some channel this desire into their professions by becoming nurses, doctors, or philanthropists. Others fulfill their longing through hobbies, volunteering for causes they support. For many years, those of us with entrepreneurial flair were considered to be in a different category, focussed alone on business or money.
That mindset is finally disappearing, with many of this decade’s most successful startups incorporating a social benefit into the fabric of their business models. The once-unique model now fills an entire category called “social entrepreneurship.”
TOMS Shoes was one of the first prominent brands to launch a “one-for-one” model, by which every pair of shoes sold provided a pair for a barefoot child somewhere in the world. FEED is a brand that sells high-end bags as funding mechanisms for school meals for children. One bag pays for 185 lunches. That’s no small impact.
The list of world-changing social enterprises goes on and on. The message? Separating entrepreneurial flair from world impact is a thing of the past. We filmed an entire episode on the subject called Social Entrepreneurs. For teachers, we’ve also created a FREE lesson plan to use in the classroom.
Here’s one of our profiles from that episode, featuring Richard’s Rwanda, a social enterprise that supports orphans whose parents were victims of the genocide in Rwanda.
Daymond John is a serial entrepreneur. He is the founder of the hit brand FUBU, a consultant to cultural icons including the Kardashian family. Oh, and he’s a Shark–a judge and investor on the reality show, Shark Tank.
He recently talked to CNN Money about his 5 keys to success:
Among them: in order to succeed, you have to fail. The importance of failure is one of those topics that can’t be mentioned enough. Every successful entrepreneur has been through plenty of failure leading them to the right idea in the right place at the right time.
And yet for many of the Biz Kids among us, our own failure can feel like an exception to the success stories we hear everyday. For all of us who have ever failed, we produced an episode dedicated to the topic. Check out Learning from Failure and get inspired to fail well.
A decade ago, Hannah Sternberg was just your average 10-year-old with her own cash register and a love for the show Extreme Couponing. Okay, maybe not so average after all.
Hannah took a page from the show’s frugal stars and began clipping coupons herself. But she didn’t just hoard items she didn’t need. She donated them to people who did. Ten years later, she’s established a nonprofit based on her combination of philanthropy and frugality.
Photo by Hannah Sternberg
The charity, Our Coupons Care, has donated $110,000 in products to date to hospitals and schools. Well done, Hannah!
Looking for even more frugal inspiration? Couponing kids are more common than you might think. We featured an equally ambitious “Coupon Girl” in Season Five of Biz Kid$ in a profile that you’ll have to see to believe:
In the town of Broomfield, Colorado, 8-year-old Jack Bonneau was set to be among them, until he dreamed even bigger. Instead of running just one lemonade stand, Jack launched an entire chain with the help of a $5000 loan. 
TOMS Shoes
