(no subject)
Recipe for a free market economics lesson:
Put 4 children at the table. Make sure they are different ages and have different tastes.
Distribute 4 random handfuls of leftover Easter candy- mostly M & Ms and jellybeans, and a few Robin's egg Whoppers.
Watch the fun!
Isaac and Elisabeth predictably went at it aggressively, but they stayed focused principally on each other- no one tried to victimize the younger set, so I didn't have to step in. Isaac said "Buy low and sell high!" Whoppers went at a premium- anywhere from 5 M & Ms up to 7 for a Whopper. Jellybeans fluctuated in value as Isaac and Abinadi prefer them but Elisabeth does not. Peter doesn't like Whoppers, but mommy ruined the lesson for him by distributing his neglected Whoppers to the remaining kids. Isaac and Elisabeth were exclaiming about how rich they were at the end. Abinadi was more of a consumer. Isaac and Elisabeth both donated charitablly to their younger siblings. Peter ran out of steam and gave his legacy up to Abinadi. Isaac exclaimed that he was "retiring" from trading when the last Whoppers changed hands, and then the sugar was all gone.
Ok well to be fair and honest, it didn't start out as a lesson, and I didn't try to make it one. It just occured to me midway through that it was working out that way. The wonders of unschooling!
And a related discovery on the household front- dishes are more fun to wash when you drink Samuel Adams lager during the process and imagine the dishwater as a spa for your hands.
Put 4 children at the table. Make sure they are different ages and have different tastes.
Distribute 4 random handfuls of leftover Easter candy- mostly M & Ms and jellybeans, and a few Robin's egg Whoppers.
Watch the fun!
Isaac and Elisabeth predictably went at it aggressively, but they stayed focused principally on each other- no one tried to victimize the younger set, so I didn't have to step in. Isaac said "Buy low and sell high!" Whoppers went at a premium- anywhere from 5 M & Ms up to 7 for a Whopper. Jellybeans fluctuated in value as Isaac and Abinadi prefer them but Elisabeth does not. Peter doesn't like Whoppers, but mommy ruined the lesson for him by distributing his neglected Whoppers to the remaining kids. Isaac and Elisabeth were exclaiming about how rich they were at the end. Abinadi was more of a consumer. Isaac and Elisabeth both donated charitablly to their younger siblings. Peter ran out of steam and gave his legacy up to Abinadi. Isaac exclaimed that he was "retiring" from trading when the last Whoppers changed hands, and then the sugar was all gone.
Ok well to be fair and honest, it didn't start out as a lesson, and I didn't try to make it one. It just occured to me midway through that it was working out that way. The wonders of unschooling!
And a related discovery on the household front- dishes are more fun to wash when you drink Samuel Adams lager during the process and imagine the dishwater as a spa for your hands.