JA It's My Business! encompasses entrepreneurship curriculum for students in Junior Secondary Schools. Students are encouraged to use critical thinking to learn skills that support positive attitudes as they explore and enhance their career aspirations.
The program emphasizes entrepreneurship while providing a strong focus on social studies, reading, and writing skills. Students are encouraged to use critical thinking to learn entrepreneurial skills that support positive attitudes as they explore and enhance their career aspirations. Six required volunteer-led activities.
The following are session descriptions and corresponding key learning objectives stating the skills and knowledge students will gain.
JA It's My Business! Was strategically developed to align with academic content areas. The program's focus on reading and writing standards ensures relevance in all classrooms affected by high-stakes testing. The program consists of six - 60 minutes' Volunteer-led sessions. In each session, there will be 30 participating students.
| Session One: I Am an Entrepreneur |
| Working in groups, students play the E-Quiz Game Show. They begin to identify entrepreneurial characteristics they possess by learning about the lives of entrepreneurs both past and present. |
Key Learning Objectives
Students will be able to:
define entrepreneurship.
identify four key entrepreneurial characteristic.
recognize personal entrepreneurial characteristics. |
| Session Two: I Can Change the World |
| Students work in groups to complete a blueprint for a Teen Club. They identify the first entrepreneurial characteristic-Fill a Need-by considering customer needs and brainstorming product design. Students begin to identify the skills and knowledge needed to start a business. |
Key Learning Objectives
Students will be able to:
describe how entrepreneurs fill a market need.
discuss the role of market research in determining market need and gaining competitive advantage.
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| Session Three: I Know My Customer |
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Working in groups, students recognize the second entrepreneurial characteristic-Know Your Customer and Product. Students discover ways to market specific products to the appropriate customers.
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Key Learning Objectives
Students will be able to:
create effective advertisements for a variety of businesses.
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| Session Four: I Have an Idea |
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Students participate in an auction designed to highlight creative and innovative entrepreneurs and their businesses
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Key Learning Objectives
Students will be able to:
recognize how being creative and innovative are necessary entrepreneurial skills for starting a business.
verbally defend their decisions.
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| Session Five: I See a Need |
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By analyzing current examples of social entrepreneurs, students identify businesses they can start. They examine ways entrepreneurs use the four entrepreneurial characteristics to develop their
business plan.
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Key Learning Objectives
Students will be able to:
analyze how entrepreneurs use their knowledge and abilities to create businesses.
develop business plans based on set criteria.
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| Session Six: Celebrate Entrepreneurs! |
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Students create Entrepreneur Profile Cards to showcase their understanding of the fourth entrepreneurial characteristic - Believe in Yourself.
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Key Learning Objectives
Students will be able to:
identify characteristics they share with entrepreneurs.
create a Personal Entrepreneurial Profile.
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JA It's My Business! enhances students' learning of the following concepts and skills:
Concepts - Advertising, Apprentice, Auction, Auctioneer, Be creative and innovative, Believe in yourself, Bid, Business, Business plan, Civic responsibility, Customer, Entrepreneur, Entrepreneur profile, Fill a need, Know your customer and product, Market, Marketing, Profit, Self-taught, Social entrepreneur
Skills - Active-listening, Analyzing information, Brainstorming, Creative thinking, Critical thinking, Decision-making, Deductive reasoning, Estimating, Following directions, Group work, Interpreting information, Measuring, Money management, Oral and written communication, Problem-solving, Self-assessment.
JA It's My Business! provides interactive, take-home materials for students, including access to an online Entrepreneur Journal at www.ja.org. Materials are packaged in a self-contained kit that includes detailed activity plans for the volunteer and enough materials for 24 students.
All JA programs are designed to support the skills and competencies identified by the Partnership for 21st Century Skills. These programs also augment school-based, work-based, and connecting activities for communities with school-to-work initiatives.
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