Kristin Smith’s first graders are getting a lesson in life in the real world. Smith has created a classroom economy. After a discussion about being helpful and contributing to “society,” Smith’s students filled out job applications for a class job. Smith awarded jobs to the best applicants, meaning some students didn’t get their first choice of job. “We discussed how sometimes in life you don’t always get the job you want right away.” Students complete their jobs throughout the week and then Friday is payday. If they did a good job without being reminded they earn class currency. If they continuously forget or do not do a good job, they can get fired from the position and replaced. Each month, jobs shift, so Smith says, “Hopefully everyone can do the class job they dream about.”
Smith pays her students with the plastic coins that come with her math series so students are used to dealing with realistic coins. Students get a quarter on payday, but they can also earn smaller coins for academic tasks like completing optional assignments, reading at home, or earning a 100% on a test. There are also several ways to receive a monetary reward for exemplary behavior, like working neatly at stations, volunteering an answer for the class, or getting “caught” being good. “When I run out of pennies, the kids can cash in for larger coins and eventually laminated dollars. This is teaching them the coin names and values. It is also teaching addition.” At the end of each month, a class store opens, and students can spend their hard earned cash on treats.
The class store is stocked with a variety of things, mostly small toys. Smith loads a shoe hanging rack and labels each item with a dollar amount. “At the beginning of the year, I help them make and count their money. Towards the end of the year, they have to count themselves and give me the correct amount for what they want to buy,” Smith says. She also carries more expensive items, like Barbie dolls and remote control cars. “Having things that cost a lot shows them how important it is to save up for the things you want.”
The microeconomy has many benefits, according to Smith. “This teaches how to be helpful and clean up your space, money management, and how to be a team player even if you have to do something you might not always like.”
Even the youngest students can start preparing for the real world.