Before the break, grade 2 classes learnt about human made systems of trade and how these systems have allowed us to obtain our needs and wants. It was a really engaging unit that linked all subject areas such as math, English and STEAM, and saw students putting their learning into action. 

The concept of a “market day” came up early in the unit as students were making handmade items to sell to other students during STEAM periods. It initially started with students trading items they had created with each other in order to fulfill their needs and wants.

Money, the most common system of trade in society, came up in our earlier discussions as another system of trade while we were reading a book called Double Fudge. The main character in the book, Fudge talks about creating his own currency. I posed the question to the class: Could this work in our class? Could we create a grade 2-4 currency? The students all jumped out of their seats saying yes! We turned the classroom into a mint and started labelling coloured pop sticks as different denominations of money.

Further into our inquiry, students suggested creating a survey to collect data about what other students would want to buy and how much they would pay. It was a fantastic learning experience where students developed a deeper understanding of systems of trade. Students were busy for the next two weeks in the STEAM lab, building and creating their most popular item.

As market day approached, we started to create our companies and grow our business ideas through marketing. Students learnt about the PARC design model and also how colours can convey emotions and feelings. We also had CIS’s catering company Sodexo talk to us about setting a price and making a profit. 

After these rich learning experiences, students were free to explore some different marketing tools and ideas ranging from developing their own logos, jingles, signs, catchphrases to setting prices that the market (in this case the primary school community) would be willing to pay. 

When market day arrived, students were given time to set up their stall, hang their advertisements and lay out their products. They were buzzing with excitement and ready to sell everything they had made and make some money. We invited our grade 5 buddies to come and see what we had been learning. We also shared our learning with other grade 2 classes. 

It was so exciting watching the students interact with each other, hearing each and every one of them talk about their product, in the hopes that a sale would be achieved. When they sold a product, the expressions on their faces told us how proud they were. 

This meaningful learning experience showed every step of a product development  and gave students a glimpse of the adult life. Well done grade 2’s!