Thursday and Friday, Nov. 10 and 11, 4-H and high school SCA teen members from all over Smyth County had the opportunity to volunteer and make the third-grade marketplace happen. Smyth County third-graders had the opportunity to go to the Smyth County Career and Technology Center and learn about their economic choices and the effect they have on their day-to-day lives.
Many kids learned to prioritize basic needs over wants and how many things they don’t think about having to pay for while living with their parents/guardians. They got to learn about their economic choices and the impact their choices have on their lives. The third-graders had the opportunity to make financial choices on their own and many saw that they needed to prioritize their needs.
This field trip for many was an eye-opening experience and gave them a better understanding of how the world works around them as they get older. At first, many kids blew their money on expensive cars and entertainment, but after some time they discovered more money was necessary for buying their needs like electricity and a home. They need to learn about financial choices early on.
It’s fascinating to see how their perspectives change when they realize the importance of prioritizing needs over wants. It’s all part of growing up and understanding the world around us and that’s why this field trip was a great thing for the kids.
On Nov. 20 and 21, eighth-grade students from Smyth and Washington counties had the opportunity to go into Abingdon’s Higher Ed Center and go through the motions of being an adult for a day.
Speakers from all over the region had the chance to go in and talk to the eighth-graders about their future career paths and experiences they have had doing their job. This was a wonderful chance for many of the students because it helped further their knowledge of jobs they might like to pursue when they get older.
After taking a short quiz, the students were given a career based on their answers and, with the salary of the job that was selected for them, they were to purchase the necessities that they needed to live. Many students were also given spouses and children that they had to take into consideration when making these decisions. Many of the kids figured out that it is not always the quantity of things that you need to worry about but the quality.
After a few speeding tickets, many kids saw that they needed car insurance.