Gladwyne Montessori’s 7th and 8th grade students capped off their yearlong Entrepreneurship studies with presentations to a carefully chosen panel of potential “investors” in Gladwyne Montessori’s Shark Tank.
Following the style of the popular television show for entrepreneurs, students presented business plan proposals for the new companies they created going over profits, business goals, marketing plans and SWOT analyses.
During this unique economics course, Gladwyne Montessori students learned about business and entrepreneurship first-hand during multiple field trips to Philadelphia-area companies and Skype interviews with an entrepreneur who has developed and sold numerous products.
“Students have been experiencing the difficulties and excitement of being an entrepreneur,” explained teacher Susana Lagunas. “They have been working hard and enthusiastically on their business plan projects that have developed over the year while they discovered the pros and cons of their different options.”
As students honed their ideas and developed their products and businesses, they created websites using weebly.com, examined potential costs, researched competition and developed presentations to make to the “sharks” – administration members including Gladwyne Montessori’s CFO.
The student-created businesses include: a YouTube entertainment channel aimed at Millennial, an Uber-like driving service for children and teens, an innovative solution to lengthen the usability of pointe shoes for ballerinas and an online personal shopping service with a price point and clothing style designed for teen girls.
“Maria Montessori believed the prepared environment for adolescents should be “a school of social experience,” said Interim Head of School Gerry Hartnett. “In our Middle School classes like Entrepreneurship encourage adolescents’ natural growth, foster independence and help connect them to the “outside” world while allowing them to work in a close-knit community of peers and adults.”