Program Overview
A portable, high-energy economic simulation. Teams get $100 in startup capital and 90 minutes to build something, sell something, and make it worth more. The school becomes the destination. Bring the economy to the children — not the children to the economy. Not a financial-literacy seminar. Not a destination facility kids have to bus to. Not School of Economics. Not an advertisement for a bank.
- We don't teach entrepreneurship. We let them become entrepreneurs.
- You have $100. What are you going to do with it?
- The in-experience bank is Wonderful Bank. No named banking partner is announced.
Quick Facts
- Grades
- 5–8 (center 6–7)
- Duration
- ~90 minutes
- Teams
- 4–6 students
- Capital
- $100 simulated
- Format
- Portable gym economy
- Venues
- Gym, cafeteria, auditorium
Works in a gym, cafeteria, auditorium, library, multipurpose room, or community center. MONEY Junior (grades 3–5) and MONEY Pro (grades 8–12) are future variants only — not separate catalog programs. Do not mix a high-school Pro variant in the same room as the flagship.
The school becomes the destination.
Destination-based economy programs can be powerful and are inherently constrained by buildings, buses, and geography. MONEY inverts that. A portable kit and a trained experience team can turn a gym into a miniature economy. Present national scale as the design opportunity — not a claim we have already made. Wonderful Bank is the in-experience bank. Co-branding such as “Wonderful Bank — powered by [Partner]” is configurable and not finalized. Do not announce a banking partnership.
- Bank employees staffing Wonderful Bank as coaches, not lecturers.
- Customer actors and marketplace volunteers.
- Screens, projectors, or venue support.
- Follow-on $100 microgrant underwriting.
- Never rolled into the cash ask. Never an advertisement on the briefcase.
What students take away
Company roles
- The Builder — Creates the product or service.
- The Money Person — Tracks cash, revenue, and expenses.
- The Seller — Finds customers and closes sales.
- The Storyteller — Creates the brand, message, and advertising.
- The Boss — Helps decide when the team disagrees.
- The Scout — Looks for opportunities, competitors, and changing market conditions.
What they discover
- Building → Engineering / trades
- Selling → Entrepreneurship
- Designing → Design / marketing
- Leading → Leadership / operations
- Money → Finance / accounting
- Negotiating → Sales / banking
- Solving problems → Operations / consulting
- Helping customers → Service / hospitality
- Technology → Product / tech
Careers the market touches
- Banking
- Finance
- Entrepreneurship
- Accounting
- Marketing
- Sales
- Operations
- Technology
- Quiet lessons hide inside wanting $100 to become more: revenue, expenses, profit, scarcity, risk, teamwork, resilience.
Run of Show
- Opening — theatrical briefcase. Do not explain everything. “There's $100 here.” Pause. “What could you turn it into?” Reveal: 90 minutes. Build a business. Every company starts with the exact same capital.
- Phase 1 — Opportunity market. Teams discover people who need things (a birthday card, something carried, a logo, entertainment, a photo, something organized, a personalized product, information, a decoration, a problem nobody has noticed). They buy resources. Every purchase has an opportunity cost. Roles may switch.
- Wonderful Bank is open: deposits, loans, change, advice, emergency financing. Bankers ask questions. They do not lecture. “We need $50.” “What are you going to do with it?” The student wants the money — so the student wants the math.
- Economic events every 10–15 minutes. Ding. The room pauses. Shipping delay. Viral! Interest rates drop or rise. New competitor. Supply shortage. Weather. Customer complaint. Big order. Recession. Boom. Events force adaptation — they are not punishment.
- Market open — lights, music, countdown. Customers enter with spending money. Sell, negotiate, discount, bundle, run out, make more, pivot. Company-to-company commerce is allowed (marketing, delivery, signs, packaging, photography, supply).
- Closing bell. MARKET CLOSED. Starting capital + revenue − expenses − debt − interest = final value. Visual tools, not spreadsheets. Live screens show the economy — companies operating, transactions, events — not a humiliating kid ranking.
- Awards — Most Valuable Company, Best New Idea, Best Customer Experience, Best Pivot, Biggest Comeback, Best Team, Best Brand, Best Sale, Best Negotiator, Smartest Investment, Best Use of $100, and Best Failure. Then silence. What would you do with a real $100?
- Emotional arc: Want → Decide → Risk → Build → Sell → Fail / succeed → Adapt → Understand → Believe “I can do this.”
The gym becomes an economy
Opportunity market
Teams of 4–6 discover people who need things, then spend $100 simulated startup capital in a priced resource store. Cardboard, markers, tape, packaging, LEGO-type components, photography, printing, equipment rental, workspace, delivery, marketing. Every purchase has an opportunity cost.
- $100 simulated capital
- Priced resources
- Roles may switch
Wonderful Bank
Deposits, loans, change, advice, emergency financing, later valuation. Bankers help companies think through decisions. They do not lecture. They are never portrayed as people whose job is to say no. This is not an advertisement for a named bank.
- Coaches, not lecturers
- Configurable lockup
- No announced banking partner
Economic events
Every 10–15 minutes: ding. The room pauses. The environment changes. Shipping delay. Viral. Rates. Competitor. Shortage. Weather. Complaint. Technology. Big order. Recession. Boom. Tax. Insurance. Adaptation, not punishment.
- MARKET OPEN
- BREAKING: CARDBOARD SHORTAGE
- MARKET CLOSES IN 14:32
Market open, closing bell, Best Failure
Customers enter with spending money. Sell. Negotiate. Pivot. First idea is not final idea. Best Failure is a real award. Optional follow-on: a real $100 as a microgrant — not a prize. Selected students try something and report what they tried, spent, earned, learned, and would do next.
- Closing bell
- Best Failure
- Optional $100 microgrant
A live marketplace — not a worksheet
This is a live marketplace in a school space. Crowd, cash-prop, and trip-hazard control matter. Simulated currency stays inside the experience. Real microgrants are a separate, optional follow-on with defined reporting — not cash handed out on the gym floor. Do not publicly rank children. Teachers do not have to teach a pre-curriculum. Wonderful Foundations operates MONEY.
What we know
- Flagship length is about 90 minutes for grades 5–8, teams of 4–6, $100 simulated startup capital each.
- Room needs company tables, a priced resource store, a bank, and a marketplace.
- Wonderful Foundations operates the experience. Teachers do not teach a pre-curriculum.
- Bank branding is configurable. No named banking partner is announced.
Still RESEARCH REQUIRED
- Kit dimensions, case count, and whether one unit fits a cargo van or a small box truck — RESEARCH REQUIRED
- Cost of one event and cost per student — RESEARCH REQUIRED
- Crew size, bank-volunteer count, and customer-actor count by student load — RESEARCH REQUIRED
- Insurance for a live marketplace in a school gym — RESEARCH REQUIRED
- Simulated-currency inventory, tablet / networking / printer kit — RESEARCH REQUIRED
- Whether multiple touring units can operate in the same week — RESEARCH REQUIRED
Help us launch MONEY
MONEY is fundraising now. Cash packages are $50,000 to sponsor a school, $100,000 recommended for program + touring kit (MONEY in a Box), and a $200,000 launch fund. Bank-volunteer and venue in-kind is never rolled into the cash ask.
$50,000 — Sponsor a school
One campus MONEY FieldTrip.
$100,000 recommended — Program + touring kit
Program development and MONEY in a Box.
$200,000 — Launch fund
Stated $200,000 launch goal — city or state underwriting.
In-kind — never added to cash
Bank employees staffing Wonderful Bank as coaches, customer actors, venue support, or microgrant underwriting — separate from cash. Never rolled into the cash ask. Never an advertisement on the briefcase.
For donors
Why donate
MONEY is a portable 90-minute economic simulation — teams of 4–6 get $100 simulated startup capital and become entrepreneurs in a gym. Your gift funds a school visit, program + touring kit, or the $200,000 launch. Bank-volunteer and venue in-kind is never added to the cash ask.
A game, not a worksheet
We don’t teach entrepreneurship. We let them become entrepreneurs. The education is hidden inside wanting $100 to become more.
The economy comes to school
Not School of Economics. Not a destination facility kids bus to. A portable kit turns a gym, cafeteria, or multipurpose room into a miniature economy.
Wonderful Bank, not a bank ad
Students actually need deposits, loans, and advice inside the simulation. No named banking partner is announced. In-kind coaches stay separate from cash.
Tax-deductible impact
Gifts to Wonderful FieldTrip through Wonderful Foundations support nonprofit education programming with measurable school-level outcomes.
What you get
- Receipt and acknowledgment for your gift
- Impact updates as schools are funded and markets are delivered
- Optional recognition on the experience page (for leadership gifts)
- Confidence that cash funds the kit and facilitation — in-kind stays separate
For sponsors
Why sponsor
Sponsors put their brand beside a portable gym economy that treats entrepreneurship as something kids do, not something they define. Distinct from School of Economics. Cash packages match the FoundationOS ask. Bank-volunteer in-kind is never rolled into cash. Do not announce a banking partnership.
Financial agency
Kids learn that money is a tool — because they needed it to do something they wanted.
Human connection
Real bankers become mentors and coaches — the coolest adults in the room. Never an advertisement on the briefcase.
Workforce development
Students discover careers in banking, finance, entrepreneurship, accounting, marketing, sales, operations, and technology.
Launch momentum
The stated launch goal is $200,000 — city or state underwriting, or a founding industry partner.
Sponsorship options
One campus MONEY FieldTrip.
Program development and MONEY in a Box.
Stated $200,000 launch goal — city or state underwriting.
What sponsors receive
- Named recognition on the experience page and trip materials
- Opportunity to staff Wonderful Bank as coaches, or underwrite microgrants — in-kind, never rolled into cash
- Impact summary after each funded school visit
- Introductions to school and district leaders in your footprint
We don't teach entrepreneurship. We let them become entrepreneurs.
— MONEY thesis
FAQ
Is this a financial-literacy class?
No. It is a game kids cannot wait to play. The education is hidden inside wanting $100 to become more.
Is this School of Economics?
No. Destination programs ask schools to travel to a facility. MONEY brings a portable economy into the gym, cafeteria, or multipurpose room.
Is a bank the sponsor of record?
Not unless a partnership is announced. Wonderful Bank is the in-experience bank. Co-branding stays configurable. Do not treat a bank such as UMB as an announced partner.
Do teachers have to prep a unit?
No. An optional 10-minute introduction is enough. Wonderful Foundations runs the clock, the bank, the store, and the market.
What if a team's product doesn't sell?
They pivot. First idea is not final idea. Best Failure is a real award.
Will you rank children on a leaderboard?
No. Live screens show the economy — companies operating, transactions, events — not a humiliating kid ranking.
Is the $100 real?
Inside the experience it is simulated startup capital. An optional follow-on can award a real $100 as a microgrant, not as a prize to spend.
How do we know it works?
Ask before and after whether a child can imagine starting something, understands what a bank does for a business, and discovered something they are good at. Over time: what did a child turn $100 into?
Start your company
Bring MONEY to your school
Share your grade level, estimated student count, and preferred dates. Designed for grades 5–8, teams of 4–6. Works in a gym, cafeteria, auditorium, library, or multipurpose room. Kit dimensions and crew size are still RESEARCH REQUIRED.
Bring FieldTrip to my schoolDonate or sponsor
Cash packages: $50,000 a school, $100,000 recommended for program + touring kit, $200,000 launch fund. Bank-volunteer and venue in-kind is never added to cash.
Donate / become a sponsorIndustry partners
Bankers, venues, and community partners can staff Wonderful Bank as coaches — never as an advertisement. Co-branding stays configurable until a partnership is announced.
View sponsor opportunitiesExplore another FieldTrip experience