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New, Innovative Educational Platform, Bea is for Business, Supports Children’s Business Education at School

                                                                                                                     
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meg at beaisforbusiness.com

 

Charlotte-based entrepreneurs launch new educational platform complete with children’s book and online resources for classrooms

Bea is for Business, a new, educational platform developed to teach children ages 6-9 the fundamentals of business, launches this month. Based in Charlotte, NC, Bea is for Business is an original, interactive resource that brings business education to students, teachers, and families through a variety of resources for the classroom and home.

The platform is built in accordance with the Common Core State Standards – but with a creative and innovative twist that’s realistic and relatable to young people, families, and teachers. At the heart of the platform is one, central, character - Beatrice Banks, “Bea” for short. Bea draws connections between math concepts, communication skills, and teamwork, to implement business ideas. She utilizes business terminology and experiences, such as implementing an assembly line for production, to teach concepts pivotal to the understanding of the current, business environment.

Perhaps the most robust online children’s business resource to date, Bea is for Business offers a plethora of means to begin the conversation about business. From their purchasable flagship children’s book and do-at-home activities, to focus groups and teacher’s guides, educators of all kinds now have a rich storehouse of material.

Bea is for Business was developed by Jamie A. Brown, MA/MBA and Meg Seitz an MBA candidate. The two entrepreneurs have business experiences ranging from publicly-traded companies, non-profits, family businesses, start-up companies, the service industry, retail, and education. And both feel strongly that there’s a need to develop business education at a younger age.

“It’s important to encourage kids to be creative thinkers and leaders,” says Brown, who dedicated her work on this project to her two young children. “Kids have excellent innate business skills that just need to be unlocked, reinforced, and given a place to thrive.”

The program encourages development and enrichment of decision-making skills that will equip young people to design, or perhaps, launch start-up ventures over summer vacation in lieu of the more common reliance on video games or television.

“Bea is a realistically-drawn, American kid who plays soccer and talks on the phone during summer vacation. In essence, she’s every kid.” Seitz says. “She doesn’t necessarily have all the answers. But she and her friends figure it out. They learn together and make an impact. ‘It was fun to work together to start a business,’ says Bea.”

A hallmark of the platform will be kids’ ability to interact with Bea, and Bea with them as she carves out her legacy as a business consultant. Parents are encouraged to work with their children to develop business ideas and to email Bea for feedback. The idea, then, is that parents, teachers, and children all take an active part in learning together about business.

This past winter, Bea is for Business was successfully test-driven in a 3rd grade classroom in Charlotte. Students responded positively, writing unsolicited letters with color illustrations addressed to Bea as suggestions for Bea’s next business adventure.

As well, the Bea platform is built to serve as an opportunity for parents and teachers to interact and connect through learning opportunities at home and school. “From our research, we’ve talked to teachers who are looking for different, innovative, out-of-the-box ideas for their students,” Seitz says. All classroom activities, curriculum ideas, and materials will be available via the website (www.beaisforbusiness.com) with the idea teachers can access materials over the summer to start planning for fall.

The multi-faceted interaction, agrees both Brown and Seitz, is the key to teaching business principles to children successfully, and for building the foundation for a well-rounded, thoughtful, young person with a strategic, informed, business acumen.



About Bea is for Business

Bea is for Business is an innovative, educational platform dedicated to teaching young people about business. Developed to enhance business education at home and at school, the Bea is for Business children's book and website encourages families and teachers to explore business topics through vocabulary development, classroom curriculums, focus groups, and do-at-home activities. For educational resources and book purchases, please visit www.beaisforbusiness.com.