Keep Calm and Buy Candy Grams

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Every year, at the end of the school year, the fifth grade students at my school go to a local camp for a camping trip. The students are able to go with minimal cost to their parents, in part due to a candy gram fundraiser the 4/5 teachers and PTO sponsor every year. In my field placement this semester, I was able to see how to run a successful fundraiser at a school, which is important to me because I plan to integrate fundraising into my future classroom.

A lot of work goes into selling candy grams. To begin this process my teacher did a social studies lesson on the industrial revolution. The students were told they had to make candy grams, and were given the supplies to make them, but were given no other rules. The students began making the candy grams and the teacher timed to see how many they got done in a certain time period. After the time expired the teacher counted them up and recorded the number that was made. She then asked the students if they could figure out another way to d make the candy grams that could go faster. The students assembled into an assembly line where each person had a job, and greatly increased their output. My teacher then tied that into the industrial revolution and had them watch a short clip about assembly lines. This is another example of how my teacher brings concept concepts down to her students more concrete level.

After the students made the initial candy grams in the lesson, everyday for a week, different fifth graders would come down to where we were selling candy grams and put additional ones together. At the end of the day they would take all the candy grams that had been filled out and deliver them to the classrooms.

I loved the concept of this project because it taught students social studies content and taught them to work for what they want, which is an invaluable lesson in life. As a teacher, I will strive to integrate innovative, concrete, lessons into my curriculum. Innovative lessons give students an experience that they will remember their whole lives.