ABOUT THE GUEST BLOGGER:

Hello, my name is Nicole Manly of Teaching in a Topknot.  I teach a middle school functional academic and life skills class in Southern California.  Prior to finishing my credentials, I was a paraeducator.  I am now in my 7th year of teaching at the middle school I attended.  

My students range in age from 10 to 15 years old.  My class is considered non-categorical, so students’ disabilities span from mild to severe.  Depending on the year, students may have academic abilities ranging from preschool to fifth grade.  This presents a unique challenge in creating lessons and activities that can be differentiated for all the students.  This snack cart business has a wide variety of skills for students to learn and practice. 

I try to expose them to a variety of daily living, cultural and vocational activities.  ClassROOM SERVICE has been a great addition to my program.  It is loved by both my students and colleagues. 

HOW THE BUSINESS STARTED:

As long as I have been running the school’s SDC program, i have looked for ways to raise some additional funds to pay for things like cooking lesson ingredients, reinforcers and sensory tools. During the 2020-2021 school year, my class was on campus for nearly a full day, but much of the program could not be implemented as designed.  At the same time, our staff vending machine had been removed from the lounge as it was a high-contact surface.  As restrictions relaxed in the second semester, I approached my principal about adding this vocational endeavor as a win-win for students and staff. 

ClassROOM SERVICE was such a success, that my colleagues requested that it continue this school year!

STUDENT TASKS:

We make our deliveries every Thursday afternoon.  We complete other campus jobs during this same time, so there are 4-6 students assigned to classROOM SERVICE each week.   I have listed the individual tasks below.  Each task could be done by a different student or a student could complete more than one task. 

TASK 1: Put order forms in teacher mailboxes and hand-deliver them to office staff/administration the day prior to deliveries. 

TASK 2: Just before deliveries, load the cooler and snack cart based on this week’s order form. (I post it on the refrigerator in our classroom.)

TASK 3: Make the deliveries.  This is broken down into 3 different jobs.  I do not collect the order forms prior to making delivery rounds.  We fill the orders at the teacher’s door.  Teachers hang their orders on their doors.  Some attach their money to the order, others pay at the point of purchase, and others pay after the deliveries are made.  This way we can keep track of orders, allows us to address when we run out of items and moves the tasks outside of the comfortable setting of our classroom. 

JOB A: Fill the orders. (This can be done by more than one student.) Students walk a set route on campus and check each door for an order. Once they have an order, they fill it and then place it on the teacher’s desk. They hand the order and any money to the student in JOB C. 

JOB B: Pull the cooler.  This student also helps by fill any drinks on the order. 

JOB C: Push the snack cart.  This includes the money box.  Once an order has been filled, this student takes the order form and any money and puts it in the money box.  If the order has been paid for, they stamp the order. (“No money, no stamp.”) 

TASK 4: Unload the cart and cooler.

TASK 5: Write invoices for any unpaid orders.

TASK 6: Place the invoices in the teacher’s mailboxes.  

(click on links above to download a FREE and EDITABLE invoice template from my TPT store.)

TIME COMMITMENT:

Most of this class business takes place during the instructional day.  The time outside of the lesson includes shopping, creating and printing order forms (I like to change them weekly), and the final collection of money.  I allow teachers to pay after the point of purchase, including via Venmo, so I manage this on my own.  I also like to keep a spreadsheet of items sold each week, so I can see the popularity of different items. I hope to eventually make that a part of the students’ tasks. 

SUPPLIES:

-Snack cart (I received an ultrasound cart from a retiring doctor, but you could borrow a cart from your media center or cafeteria.  A wagon would also work.)

-Cooler on wheels (If you don’t have access to a refrigerator, you would also need ice.)

-Cash box

-Printer (Color order forms make all the difference)

-Paper bags (I like to use gift bags with handles that I buy in bulk)

-Snack and drinks to sell (I buy mine at Costco or Sam’s Club)

PRICING:

To make it easy for staff and students, EVERYTHING is $1.  I spend between $.25 and $.60 per item.  I try to aim for $.40, but that isn’t possible with chocolate candy.  We sell about $40-$60 of snacks per week.  I would say most who order, order at least 2 items at a time.  

MARKETING:

We really don’t need to do much marketing.  The staff on campus LOOK FORWARD to Thursdays.  I simply send out an email at the beginning of the year explaining the process of ordering and paying.  Then for the first month, I sent an email each week as a reminder.  After that, the order form in the mailbox is all the advertisement we need. We even have teachers come out of their classrooms who did not fill out a form as we roll by. 

TIPS:

1.) Send periodic surveys to teachers to see what they want offered on the snack cart.

2.) Try to get food items donated by families or local businesses.

3.) See if admin can fund any business supplies or the initial food and drink purchase. 

4.) If your staff is anything like mine, make sure you are always stocked with DIET COKES.

Thanks for reading and happy snacking!

Nicole Manly from Teaching in a Topknot

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