Dakota State University is hosting “Lemonade Camps” this summer to teach children about the principles of business.
The university hosts the four-day camp out of the Washington Pavilion this week. It previously held a camp in Madison in late July.
The program uses lemonade stands as an analogy to teach kids ages 9 to 11 about business. Campers learn about how to calculate proper pricing for their lemonade to get a profit.
This is the first year Lemonade Camp has taken place in Sioux Falls and the second year DSU has sponsored the program. CybHER, local Sioux Falls businesses, and DSU’s entrepreneurial center staff and organized the camp’s programing.
Over the course of four days, campers form teams and learn about different science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) traits of business.
DSU’s Katherine Cota is the lead organizer of the camp. She believes it is important to give youth the opportunity to learn about how they can become their own bosses.
“Some of these campers that are attending today have their own business ideas that they want to start,” said Cota. “We use the Lemonade camp model setting up a lemonade stand as a way to teach those universal business principles that they are going to know for the jewelry bracelet sales business that they want to start.”
Teams of campers will bring their lemonade stand simulation to life in downtown Sioux Falls Aug. 17. The proceeds made from the lemonade sales go to the charity chosen by each team of campers.
