Interactive Projects

Overview
In the activity, students working in groups visit Web sites to get background information on the juice bar concept that is sweeping parts of the country. They gain some sense of the costs involved in starting up this type of business as well as the advantages and health benefits. Group members use the information gathered to brainstorm, and create a business plan for a juice bar at their own school. Students are encouraged to present their business plan to the school administration.

Objectives

• To use on-line information on the juice bar concept to develop a business plan for a juice bar to be opened and run in the school.
• To recognize the health benefits of fruit juice over other beverages.
• To use social skills, including communication and cooperation, to execute a group plan.

Getting Started
Introduce the activity by asking for a show of hands of students who either work at part-time jobs or have run a business. Ask: What types of skills are needed to succeed in the workplace? After allowing time for discussion, write the term juice bar on the chalkboard. If juice bars are not yet popular in your community, help students understand that juice bars are a type of business found largely in malls and shopping centers that, as their name implies, specialize in healthful, freshly squeezed juice drinks. Note that in this activity, students learn more about the juice bar concept with a possible eye toward opening their own juice bar.

Classroom Follow-up
After groups have had an opportunity to compare and contrast business plans, invite the class as a whole to draft a final version of a plan that incorporates the best features of all the plans. This may then be presented to the school administration. If students receive the green light and actually establish an on-site juice bar, encourage them to maintain a running log of their experience in business, including problems they encountered and how these were resolved. If the log is maintained on the classroom computer, interested students may ultimately elect to publish their findings in a booklet titled "How to Succeed in Business."