Downloadable Resources
Grade 11 Entrepreneurship
Students spend the first four weeks looking at the basic on entrepreneurship and then get started on their business plans. Throughout there are vocabulary tests, almost weekly. Students are provided with word lists and definitions in the previous week for the current week’s quiz. They are expected to prepare for these independently asking for help as need be. There are also business challenges throughout the course to provide variation to the routine.
Course Sequence
- Course Introduction: Students are introduced to entrepreneurship and the approach that the course will take. Students look at local businesses and start to think about their interaction with business each day. The week ends with the very first episode of the apprentice, The Lemonade Stand which looks both the basics of starting a simple business and who is involved.
- The world of work and the world of school: The article “Do Grades Really Matter” becomes a focus of this week. Students examine the differences between school and the world of work and look at factors that make people successful. An uplifting week for many! Students also participate in a one class activity called “Wheeling and Dealing” where in groups of mixed academic smart and street smart students, they use their record keeping and negotiating skills to get a full deck of cards.
- Who are entrepreneurs?: Students select and study two entrepreneurs, look at characteristics that help make them successful. They also begin to plan the food stand assignment where students get an instant lesson in many aspects of entrepreneurship.
- The Food Stand Assignment: First called the taco assignment where students made and sold various types of tacos the food stand assignment challenges students to make or buy $30.00 worth of product and sell it in the cafeteria during one period. Students experience entrepreneurship directly and an immense amount of learning happens in a very short time. Profit is donated to a class selected charity.
- The Business Plan begins! Students start their business plan with Part 1 – Type of Business and Part 2 – name and Logo. The course changes as now much of the time is spent talking with students one on one about their businesses.
- SWOT: The students begin to study the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of their own businesses and their competitors.
- Location, Location, Location: Students research a real location and provide a rationale as to why this is a good place for their business. Students make contact with real estate agents. They also define their competitive advantage after completing the SWOT the week before.
- Who is the customer? Students use demographics, psychographics and geographics to define their target customers. They use on-line tools like Statistics Canada to gather data.