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Beyond The Lemonade Stand

Beyond the Lemonade Stand is an interesting book about how Bill Rancic used small opportunities to make money when he was young. The book is divided into five parts. In the first part of the book, Rancic focuses on his life experiences and he adds vignettes from 9-12-year-old students (Rancic interviewed students at a Chicago suburb elementary school). For example, Rancic made use of opportunities such as a heavy snowfall to make some money. Rancic also learned the importance of being prepared at a job and to complete tasks today instead of tomorrow when he forgot to bring bags to hold the leaves he was raking. Instead of returning right away to complete his task, Rancic returned the next day to find that the leaves had scattered and Rancic had to re-rake the leaves.

The second part is the gem of the book. The stories are great, but the second part is new and different. Here, Rancic goes through 20 kid-friendly business plans. The format of these plans is a great tool for students to organize their business ideas, to make sure they know what is involved in starting their business, and to make it successful. Oftentimes it’s not a bad idea that ruins a business, but a poorly organized business plan.

Grade Level: 4-5

Genre: Nonfiction

Format: Chapter Book

Content:

economics