Scarcity

by a 4th Grade Banker

4 scoops of ice cream and only 2 cones
7 sling shots and only 3 stones
5 old backpacks and only 2 kids
9 little bottles and only 5 lids
It's Scarcity

 

What's Happening?

Talbot Hill's Annual AUCTION!

Talbot Hill's first auction raised over $15,000 to support our MicroSociety program. Our 2nd auction raised almost $32,000! We'll be doing it again in 2008! Do you have something you could donate -- use of your summer cabin, a day of fishing on your boat, tickets to a Mariner or Seahawk game? Could you make something? Do you go to stores & restaurants in the Renton area -- could you ask for a donation from them? Are you good at displaying and organizing merchandise -- could you help with set up at the auction? Contact Denise Elliot - 425-227-4491 or by email

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MicroSociety Day-to-Day

MicroSociety Organizations meet on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday for 60 minutes from 2:30 - 3:30 pm. In September and October, the students go through an "Academy" time -- learning about MicroSociety, voting, economics and the various jobs. By November, the student legislature will have been elected, and the students will have started in their jobs. There will be several Marketplaces -- starting in January with an evening Open House on May 3rd (6:30 pm), but various businesses are open each day. During MicroTime, small businesses can open up to sell their goods, as well as other services such as the bank, post office, court and newspaper can be accessed.

The Talbot Hill community elects each year's Legislature in November. Our Legislature consists of a President, Vice-President, 2 At-Large members from last year, a Senate composed of 2 representatives for grades 1-5, and a House with 1 representative from each classroom. Talbot Hill has already broken the gender barrier - so far, most of the presidents have been girls. This year, we have a City Hall and the President, Vice-President and secretary & accountant for each house are in City Hall.

One of those priceless moments:
The Legislature had noticed that they seemed to be collecting a lot of money in taxes. They decided to give themselves a substantial raise to $15 a day while everybody else was only earning $5. The newspaper caught wind of this raise, and sent an investigative reporter to check out the story. A hurried meeting was convened, and the president suggested that the legislature needed to reconsider their raises, opening the meeting by saying "I don't want to get impeached after just a few months in office." The 2nd grade legislator then asked, "Are they going to give us peaches?"

An explanation of impeachment followed to maximize the "teachable moment" but it was hard for Mrs. Dunton not to smile.

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Organization Reports:

This year, we are planning to have the City Hall, Hall of Justice, Bank, IRS & Warehouse Store, Small Businesses, TV & Tech, Recycle Center, Composters & Gardeners, Magazine and the Theater. In addition, our primary grades have whole class businesses that usually produce several products to sell at our Marketplace or offer services such as the Post Office or a museum.

The City Hall is the administrative branch. The students introduce new students to Talbot Hill and MicroSociety as well as review & approve business plans, and conduct Quality Control inspections. The secretaries & accountants for each House can use this time to take care of typing & distributing minutes or preparing the payroll checks for the Student Government.

At the Talbot Hill Bank, students can deposit their paychecks, write checks or withdraw Cool Cash for Marketplace purchases. Businesses have separate accounts and can also get business loans for starting production.

The IRS is combined with the Warehouse and the Dept. of Licensing. Each business has to have a business license displayed to sell during Marketplace. Small business owners have to report their gross sales, and pay a 30% income tax after each Marketplace. All students have to pay taxes on their income.

The Talbot Hill Magazine called Magmania has several special feature articles. They use a word processing program to set up and print their magazine. They are also learning to use the scanner and digital camera to add pictures.

The TV News station is called KATS-TV. They have a news studio in the media room between the library and computer lab, and have been learning about all the jobs needed to produce a broadcast.

Small Businesses give our creative entrepreneurs an opportunity to create exciting merchandise. Products have ranged from candles to weavings to bookmarks to popsicle-stick forts to decorated tins and more... Our primary grades also produce merchandise as a whole class business.

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Mini-College - Guest Professors

We have had members of the community, including a reporter, lawyer, police and firemen, come to share about their careers, helping our students see how important the basics are to any career. Several guest professors, including parents, taught simple craft projects to our small business groups. And some came to teach a skill - such as writing checks and balancing registers. Some have shared information regarding community service projects. Our students enjoyed learning about different careers and seeing how reading, writing and 'rithmetic fit together in the real world.

We always welcome guest speakers to talk to our organizations. If you are interested in participating, contact Sally Boni at sally.boni@renton.wednet.edu or at 425-204-4916. Or download this sign-up form, fill it out and return it to Sally Boni at Talbot Hill Elementary School, 2300 Talbot Road S., Renton, WA 98055.

To see some pictures of our 1998 Mini-College, please click here.