Taking Care of Business

1. Set Focus
Pose this essential question to guide discussion: How do you turn an idea into a business??

2. List Vocabulary
Share with students some of the challenging vocabulary words in this article (below). Encourage them to use context to infer meanings as they read.

• entrepreneurs (p. 12)
• enterprise (p. 13)
• liability (p. 13)
• assets (p. 13)
• revenue (p. 14)
• incarcerated (p. 15)

3. Engage
Have students brainstorm a business idea and share it with a partner. Have the partners discuss the steps they think they would need to take to make their idea a reality. Revisit this discussion after the lesson, having students share any new insights they’ve gained.

4. Read 
Have students read the article, marking the text to note key ideas or questions.

5. Discuss
Distribute or project Up Close: Taking Care of Business, a close-reading activity for students to work on in small groups. (Note: The questions on the PDF also appear on the following page of this lesson, with possible responses.) Follow up with a class discussion. If you’re short on time, have each group tackle one or two of the questions. Collect students’ work or have each group report its findings to the class.

• What is the author’s main purpose in writing the article? Do you think the structure of the article is the most effective choice for supporting this purpose? Explain. (Author’s purpose, text structure) (The author’s main purpose is to explain why and how teens start successful businesses. Evaluations of the text structure will vary, but students should provide an assessment of the effectiveness of dividing the article into sections—mostly focusing on one entrepreneur per section—and weaving related ideas throughout each section, as opposed to, for example, discussing entrepreneurship with a profile of one individual.)

• In the first section, the author writes “Three out of five American teens would rather start their own business than have a traditional job.” What reasons does the article provide to explain why? (Cite text evidence) (The article says that social media and business reality-TV shows, such as Shark Tank, have “put a spotlight” on entrepreneurship in ways that appeal to young people. Both made starting a business “ ‘appear much more accessible.’ ”)

• What is the purpose of the sidebar “Big Businesses Started by Teens”? And how does the photo support that purpose? (Analyze purpose, visual analysis) (The purpose of “Big Businesses Started by Teens” is to show the reader that influential and well-known companies were started by teens like them. The photo of Mark Zuckerberg as a teen shows how young he was when he started the company now known as Meta, and it reinforces how possible it is for teens to start businesses that grow into successful enterprises.)

• What is the central idea of the section “Problem Solving”? How is this idea supported in later sections? (Central idea, integrate information) (The central idea of “Problem Solving” is that teens start businesses to solve problems in their communities. Some, such as Maya Penn, who created eco-friendly fashion, tackle more global issues, like wasteful consumerism. In later sections, other teens discuss how their businesses either directly or indirectly help others: The Martinez brothers donate profits to charity, and Keith Griffith III raises awareness about environmental and mental health issues.)

• The article discusses some of the problems faced by teen entrepreneurs when running a business. What is one of the problems and what solution(s) does the article provide (Problem & solution) (The problem introduced in “Teen Bosses” is that teens might have trouble being taken seriously, which the Martinez brothers solved by showing their dedication. The section “At School & the Office” describes the problem of managing the demands of school and a business, which Jungmin Kang solved by improving her time management, taking a gap year, and hiring her mom.)

• What does Keith Griffith III’s story have in common with the other stories? How is his story unique? Why do you think the article ends with his story? (Compare & contrast, author’s purpose) (Like the other entrepreneurs, Keith had an idea, got some help, started his business small and then worked to grow it, and used his business to support causes. His story is different because he was also dealing with the emotional consequences of his parents’ incarceration. The article ends with his story because it’s uplifting and shows that teens can start businesses even when struggling with tough circumstances.)

6. Writing Prompt
Work with a partner to draft a business plan that describes the business idea, who the audience is, what the goods or services will be, what the product will cost, and how it will be marketed.

7. Video
Watch the video about Maya Penn’s business. What does it add to your understanding?

8. Classroom Project
Have partners create business “pitch” presentations, including relevant visuals, to present to the class.

9. Quiz & Skills
Use the quiz to assess comprehension and Be the Editor to review grammar skills.