Financial Literacy for Fifth Graders

4/10/2025

Fifth graders at Severn have taken on the unique challenge of planning, supplying, and operating the Lower School's first-ever school store.

The brainchild of LS Math Specialist Stacy Shaener, the store operates weekly. Proceeds from the store benefit The Recess Project, a nonprofit that works to make school playground equipment accessible for students with disabilities.

Dubbed Severn Supplies, the store has been a hit with students from all grades at the LS. Fifth graders work in rotation to run the store every Wednesday morning, putting out pens, highlighters, scented erasers, and more for their classmates to purchase. Students are responsible for keeping the store stocked with supplies and handling the money. For Shaener, the store provides opportunities for students to learn practical skills outside the classroom.

"I wanted to improve student's financial literacy," said Shaener. "There's autonomy; they learn to find unit pricing and price items accordingly. There are real-world lessons for them."

The store is run by committees formed by the fifth graders. The Philanthropy Committee is responsible for choosing and communicating with the charity. At the same time, the Buying Committee keeps the store stocked and chooses what products to buy. There is also a Marketing Committee that designs the logo, an Advertising Committee that puts posters up around the school, and even a Pricing Committee that decides what each item will cost.

"I wanted to be in the Buying Committee because I thought it would be cool to choose products and see what sells the best," said Cooper '32.

Since its inception, Severn Supplies has raised over $1200 for The Recess Project. Students have learned sales tactics, such as identifying what sells well and focusing on similar products. When a product struggles, they've learned to drop the price and advertise it via posters. Their store sells out of most merchandise every week. The success of Severn Supplies has even gained the attention of the board of TRP. Fifth graders had a meeting with them this week to discuss their project and learn about the impact their donation will have.

The lessons learned from this inaugural year will provide bigger and bolder ideas for the next iteration. Students who line up for the store today will be the leaders who build on this foundation tomorrow.

"I'd love to have every new fifth-grade class start fresh," says Shaener. "To be able to rename, rebrand, and take ownership of the store so each year is their own to hold up."

The fifth graders' efforts at Severn Supplies reflect their excitement and teamwork. Their dedication to running the store properly and building on each other's ideas have given the store the potential to become a lasting tradition at Severn School.

"I really like how it's a special thing for fifth graders to do," said McKenzie '32. "We get to make it what we want."

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