Pinner Park Junior School, as chool working with us to build essential skills, were keen to take to take one of Challenge Days to one of their partner schools in Uganda, giving students the opportunity to design and create their own range of greetings cards.

Masindi Public School wanted their students to have a similar experience: to leave with the essential skills that could one day enable them to go in to business with an understanding of what is involved.

On the day, they set up shop just as they had in our UK school. Beginning by introducing the challenge, we discussed greetings cards and the occasions they could be used for. Children worked in groups of around 6/7, and for this challenge, we allowed children to choose the occasion for which they wanted to make a card.

By the afternoon, some groups had made 6 cards the same and had made a considerate profit. We modelled how to deliver a pitch so that children could both sell their cards and present their business. Three groups did exceptionally well, fulfilling all requirements for the project. In fact, one group exceeded all expectations, making a large profit margin by lending their materials to others and charging for it (e.g. scissors because these were limited) and by selling their services in persuading the adults to buy the cards of other businesses!

Overall, it was an excellent opportunity for learners to be introduced to essential skills. Just like children anywhere, they had to work hard to build team cohesion by listening carefully and sharing their ideas, ensuring the quality of their designs by appointing someone to check them while being persuasive in presenting their business.

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