have a client that would like to teach his kids the value of work and
would like facilitation and creativity; i.e. more than just lemonade
stand.  curious if anyone has made a deal with a retailer to 'employ'
the kids, perhaps with parent or guardian overseeing.

Hi holguinero-ga, 

Obviously the work children are able to do is dependent on their ages.
Due to labor and safety laws, in most cases children under 14 cannot
"go to work" even with a parent. But this doesn't mean they can't
learn the value of working for a reward.

I've answered your basic question, "what can elementary school age
kids do to earn money & learn business in summer?" by providing some
examples from my own experience. I always tell people, "I have been
self-employed since I was 9," and for the most part, that's held true.

At the younger end, for kids who are 4-8, the value of work is hard to
impart because we always equate it with money –and at that age they
have trouble understanding the value of money. The "work for stuff"
theory makes a lot more sense to them.

For older kids, the act of organizing a business or event in return
for money is a good way to learn the value of their own time. This is
a much better lesson than that of "going to work" where the slackers
make the same hourly pay as the hard-workers.



============================
WORK FOR "STUFF" (5-10 yr olds) 
==========================

I've done this quite successfully both at home and in a classroom
setting, with children 5-10 years old. It's a great lesson in working
for reward and in saving versus spending -- without the risk of a
child wasting or losing actual money.

Implement a "Points For Products" system. In short, children earn
points that can be spent on "Store" items that the parents provide.

TO ACCUMULATE POINTS ---

Children are issued nominal daily points (25) just for "being a kid."
(allows a slow accumulation no matter what the child does)

Chores are posted with point values attached to them (50-200 pts) that
the children may choose to do.

Children are also offered points for "Personal Achievement" goals such
as learning to tie shoes, memorizing times tables, or reading a
chapter book.


TO SPEND POINTS ----

Once a week parents review the points accumulated and then allow the
children to "shop" at a "store" that the parents set up in advance –
everything priced in points.  Children can save for big point items or
spend it all.


We stock our store with Dollar Store items, cool hand-me-down toys
from family members, homemade coupons ("Lunch Out With Dad At Your
Choice Of Restaurant"),  and a few candy treats.  Prices range from 50
to 1200 points.



=============================
WORK FOR MONEY  (10-14 yr olds) 
=============================

1 – Pet Sitting

From age 12-14 I ran a neighborhood pet-sitting business. I cared for
people's dogs and cats in their homes (just neighbors and friends) and
I also ran a caged-pet sitting service from home that I advertised in
the local paper. People brought over their hamsters, birds, iguanas,
bunnies, you name it and I took care of it for a daily rate.

2 – Teach something you know

By age 13 I was teaching (very) basic guitar to several of my friends
and by 14 I was teaching horseback riding lessons to little kids on my
pony.

A particularly adept (and patient) child may be able to tutor younger
students in school subjects or offer a homework help service.
 

3 – Sell things you have

Organize a yard sale or toy sale. Letting the child determine prices
based on cost, condition, and usefulness and then having them study
the reaction of buyers, teaches the difference between price and
value. Also have them calculate how many hours they put into the yard
sale versus the return.

4 – Hold an event 

Organize and host a neighborhood dog show, magic show, play, carnival,
bicycle rodeo.


5 – Better than Ye Olde Lemonade Stand! 

Our 9-year old last summer set up a Frozen Treat stand in our front
yard. She bought popsicles and fudge bars in bulk from the grocery
store and marked them up just enough to undercut the local ice-cream
vendor. We had a few iterations as far as what sold and what did not,
but in the end she made over $125 over about 4 weeks.

*as a side note, but also in the spirit of the value of work, she used
the money to buy a metal detector, and on the first day out found a
gold ring which netted her a $100 reward.


=============================
WORK FOR THE GREATER GOOD
=============================

Volunteer!   Show the children that the real value of work is not in
the money. Have your client take his/her child to volunteer to do
something good with their time. Better than money, this will show the
true value of work.

IDEAS –

Collect toys for children in hospitals or homeless shelters

Visit senior citizens in homes


EXAMPLES OF CHILDREN VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES

Children In The Community And A Concept Of Community In Children 
http://www.familyplace.com.my/articles/care_for_child_3.htm

 
If over 14 they can volunteer for Habitat for Humanity
http://www.habitat.org/


Teens and Children Can Volunteer
http://www.stignatiussf.org/shelter_meal_kids.htm


MUSEUM VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES
http://www.cmuseum.org/interesting_museum_facts.htm


THE GIFT OF TIME
http://www.thevolunteercenter.org/respite.html

So that should give you and your client a good launching point for
summer earning projects for the kids.

Thanks for your question –

-K~

search term

"children can volunteer"

---

Request for Answer Clarification by holguinero-ga on 21 May 2003 12:13 PDT

thanks for the ideas, but mainly looking for examples of how kids
plugged into a retail environment, e.g. they and their parents work at
area cookie store. looking for structure and facilitation and ideas
along those lines.

---

Clarification of Answer by knowledge_seeker-ga on 22 May 2003 09:02 PDT

Hi again holguinero,

I guess I am misunderstanding what exactly you want. Let's see if we
can clear it up.

First, knowing the age the children would be extremely helpful. As the
commenters and I have pointed out, there is a big difference between
what a 6-year old can do and what a 10-year old can do, as well as a
big difference in what they will gain from the experience, if
anything.

For example, a 6-year old can't count money. A 10-year old can. A
6-year old can't fill out an order slip, a 10-year old can.

Also, a 6-year-old will be limited, not only by ability, but by
attention span. An hour (or two at most) of watching and "helping" in
any environment is pretty much all you could expect out of a child
that age. A 10-year old might be good for a half-day or so.

Neither is allowed to be around ovens, industrial machinery,
chemicals, and many other workplace hazards. And neither may "work"
for pay or otherwise.

So, what exactly do you want me to provide? I thought you were looking
for ways for children to get some kind of work-like experience that
would give them a first-hand taste of what work for reward is all
about.

What do you mean by "plugged into a retail environment?"  
What do you mean by "structure and facilitation"?  

Do you want me to brainstorm some ideas for what types of retail
businesses MIGHT allow a parent and child to spend part of a day "at
work"?

Do you want me to give examples of places where parents routinely have
their own children helping out?

If you can give me some more information, I'll be happy to follow up
with a clarification.

Thanks –

-K~

Dear holguinero-ga, 

Could you tell us exactly how old these kids are?  There's a big
difference between what is appropriate for a six year old and what is
appropriate for a 10 year old.

Also, is there a particular reason why you ask about retailers? 
Unless the children are specially interested in retailing, I would
suggest pursuing something that tied in to their areas of interest,
whatever they may be.

Finally, what state does your client live in (assuming that you are in
the United States)?  Or perhaps more to the point, what state will the
children be in over the summer?

You should be aware that, in general, federal law prohibits children
under the age of 14 from working for pay.  There are a number of
exceptions to this rule; one of them is that a child under 14 may work
for his or her parent.
http://www.dol.gov/elaws/esa/flsa/docs/hours.asp  

In order to stay within the law, I suggest that your client think in
terms of finding the children a non-paid internship.  He can of course
choose to pay them out of his own pocket for the time they spend
working, thus turning it into paid employment from their point of
view.

If this approach is interesting to you, then let me know and I will
pursue.  Please be advised that I am not an official Google Answers
Researcher - I am someone who hangs out here and comments on questions
that interest me.

Hello holguinero-ga,

Junior Achievement has programs for elementary school children that
might meet your needs.

Junior Achievement, Elementary School Programs
http://www.ja.org/programs/programs_elem_overview.shtml
“The Elementary School Programs include seven sequential themes for
kindergarten through sixth-grade students and two capstone
experiences. Students learn the basic concepts of business and
economics and how education is relevant to the workplace.”

Googlenut

Don't dismiss lemonade stands entirely. In my hometown, a highly
unusual "lemonade stand" project was spearheaded by kids:

http://www.b4-u-buy.com/01k35599.htm