Lesson Plan: Day 2 Core Block - Business & Finance

Lesson Overview

In today’s lesson, students step into their roles as young business planners within the Business & Finance District of Civic Square. Building on the mentor text “Grand Opening: A Civic Square Story,” they will explore how AJ, Liam, Simay, and Onyx brainstorm their shop ideas. Students will practice retelling events, writing star detail sentences, using commas in a list, and rounding prices to calculate total costs. Through guided discussion, creative writing, and applied math, students will experience the foundational steps of planning a successful store in their learning city.

Time Allocation: 30 Minutes

Hook (5 minutes)

Begin the lesson by displaying a short video clip or images of various businesses (e.g., ice cream shop, bookstore, pet store). Ask students:

"What makes a store successful?"
"What are some things you think about when starting your own store?”

Teaching Point

Introduce the day’s focus areas:

Reading: Retelling events from “Grand Opening: A Civic Square Story.”
Writing: Crafting star detail sentences about a store idea.
Grammar: Using commas in a list.
Math: Rounding prices to find a total.

I Can Statements

Reading: “I can retell important events from a story.”
Writing: “I can write a strong detail sentence about my store idea.”
Grammar: “I can use commas correctly in a list.”
Math: “I can round prices to find a total cost.”

Mini-Lessons

Reading (6 minutes)

Modeling: Read a brief excerpt from “Grand Opening: A Civic Square Story” focusing on the brainstorming scenes. Teaching Point: Discuss how the characters think about their store ideas. Guided Practice: Ask students to share what they remember about the characters and their ideas. Encourage retelling the sequence of events in pairs.

Writing (6 minutes)

Modeling: Show examples of star detail sentences (“My store will sell ice cream that comes in ten flavors!”). Guided Practice: As a class, compose a star detail sentence about one character's store idea. Independent Task:

K–2: Write one star detail sentence about their own store idea.
3–5: Write two star detail sentences with additional adjectives.

Grammar (5 minutes)

Modeling: Explain the purpose of commas in lists. Show examples (“We will sell toys, books, and games.”). Guided Practice: Create a list as a class of what their stores will sell, placing commas correctly. Independent Task:

K–2: List three items their store will sell using commas.
3–5: List five items, ensuring proper comma usage.

Math (6 minutes)

Modeling: Share several prices and demonstrate rounding (e.g., $4.75 becomes $5.00). Guided Practice: Have students round three different prices together as a group. Independent Task:

K–2: Round three prices (e.g., $1.25, $2.49, $6.80) to the nearest dollar.
3–5: Round five prices to the nearest dollar and find the total.

Reflection (2 minutes)

To conclude the lesson, hold a quick discussion with students. Prompt: “Why is planning important for building a successful business?” Encourage students to share thoughts about how planning can help their store ideas.

Assessment and Closing

As you wrap up, collect students' work on their star detail sentences, comma lists, and rounded prices. Offer feedback and encourage students to think about their business plans for future lessons.

This lesson not only sparks creativity but also instills the practical skills necessary for young entrepreneurs.