The Internet has dramatically changed the world. It has altered the way that people communicate and has therefore opened society up to become increasingly global. This has changed the way that people work, attend school, make friends and ultimately broadens ones outlook on life. It has also opened up numerous possibilities for people of all ages that would have seemed like science fiction less than a decade ago.
Noting that the Internet is a never ending source of information, it is a tool that homeschooling parents can use to make sure that their children’s education is especially applicable to modern day life. Although homeschoolers are generally required to follow an academic curriculum in order to satisfy state schooling requirements, there is ample ability to implement other fields of study that schools tend to neglect like art, music, and business.
Although there has been a lot of controversy surrounding the increasingly absent teaching of arts in schools, there is very little discussion into why children are not taught more about business practices. The vast majority of children will grow up to work in some kind of business setting. Unfortunately, not much emphasis is put on teaching business practices until kids have reached college level and happen to be business majors. There is a widespread lack of knowledge about how businesses work and this lead to other issues such as inability to manage money or understand the workings of the economy.
The best way to teach children about businesses is to allow them to run their own business. Of course it is essential to first go over the hard facts and basic rules of business that can be read in any textbook or business-information oriented website. However, actually having the ability to run a business, and perhaps even create products for it, puts kids at a great advantage to learn lessons about being a businessperson firsthand.
The Internet has many outlets where people can start businesses. Etsy.com allows individuals to create accounts and maintain stores filled with unique products and merchandise. If a child likes to make yarn dolls or jewelry then they can sell their products on Etsy (or Ebay) and feel the thrill of knowing that others are interested in purchasing something they created. YouTube pays “partnered” users based on the amount of subscribers and “views” that they have on a channel. Hence, if someone is interested in fashion or animation or sports they can make videos about the subject and get paid for doing it. Although this is more akin to freelancing than to actual business practices, it still gives kids the valuable opportunity to learn about how to produce worthy products and services. Plus, they might get some extra spending money out of the endeavor.
The Internet has allowed many people to receive attention and even profit from their talents. Social media and the ease of creating websites for oneself have set the pace for limitless possibilities. Although not everyone will be interested in starting an online business, many individuals are probably quite interested in sharing their talents. Thus, if you have a child who wishes to partake in an activity like this then it can be a great learning opportunity and unforgettable life experience for them.
Comments