Seven 6th grade students at Blackham Middle School in Bridgeport, CT participated in an entrepreneurship program from October 2010 to May 2011 where they formed three businesses - Star Pillowz, Crazy Chocolate Creations, and Chris & Joes Sweets to Go. The students learned about career clusters, opportunity recognition, business goals and marketing. They presented their business ideas to judges and were encouraged to use promotional tactics, with one team raffling a product sample and using a mascot. Awards were given for best marketing, business pitch, and most innovative idea.

1. NFTE Business Plan Competition Middle School Curriculum Location: Blackham Middle School Bridgeport, CT Teacher: Tanesha Poyser

2. The program took place October 2010 - May 2011, with a total of seven 6 th graders .

3. Students worked together in teams and created businesses. There was a total of three (3) businesses Star Pillowz, Crazy Chocolate Creations & Chris & Joes Sweets to Go .

5. Each team presented their business ideas to a panel of judges .

8. Question & Answer Session

9. Students were encouraged to incorporate different promotional tactics in their presentation. One team raffled a sample of their product & used a mascot.

11. One of the judges won a star pillow!

12. The End