KIVA

This project began as a interdisciplinary collaboration in Kindergarten through 4th Grade to reinforce economic principles through art. Students created original artwork illustrating 12 economic principles for each month of the year and published it as a calendar. Each class was given the choice of how to use the funds to help others in need. In a 2nd Grade classroom and several 4th Grade classrooms the decision was made to fund entrepreneurs in developing countries through the KIVA organization. At the 2nd Grade level, students choose an entrepreneur as a whole group and donated personal funds in addition to proceeds from the calendar sales. At the 4th Grade level it evolved into a practical lesson of service, entrepreneurship, and micro-finance. In stage one, students worked in pairs to learn about KIVA and micro-finance. In the stage two, students choose candidate entrepreneurs whom they would propose to the class for funding. Students were required to list several criteria to consider when evaluating loan applications. Each team made presentations to the class and a final vote was taken to determine which entrepreneur among 10 or 11 presented would be funded.