My Brain is Upside Down!: Junior Achievement City aka Biz Town!

To Learn About JA Biz Town go here. Here's a short summary of the program from the website.

JA Biz Town – 5th Grade Program

The JA City 5th grade program combines in-class learning with a day-long visit to this fully-interactive simulated town facility. The program helps students connect the dots between what they learn in school and the real world. Through daily lessons, hands-on activities and active participation in running the City, students develop a strong understanding of the relationship between what they learn in school and their successful participation in a worldwide economy. During their day at JA City, students work as employees in various businesses (facilitated by volunteer educators and business professionals), they are paid for their labor and they manage personal checking accounts. Throughout the day, students also learn about time and money management skills as they work, bank and shop as consumers. JA City helps prepare students for a lifetime of learning and academic achievement.

Reflections from the kids and the pictures will tell part of the story. This is the culminating activity from a month of preparation (not counting the many integrated skills). I'm choosing to publish the unedited version of the kids' writing. Yes, we have a lot of work to do! :) We had a blast today! This is what kids need to do- learn from hands-on, relevant, highly engaging activities. #kidsdeserveit