Business History and Fun Facts in Two Cool Business Books for Young Readers

Children around the country are becoming young entrepreneurs with simple activities like lemonade stands and more sophisticated ideas for companies that raise money for charities. Schools are now teaching basics in business to students in middle school. Schools often give students the opportunity to organize businesses inside their school in order to learn the basics of the business world.

Lowey Bundy Sichol offers two books that will inspire young entrepreneurs when they read the history of the popular companies Nike and Disney. From An Idea to Disney and From An Idea to Nike are two really cool and interesting books for young readers to learn about how the companies began, the pitfalls that were encountered by both in early days, and fun facts about the success of each company.

Take a trip through the beginning of the Disney company to what the company has become. The company began as just an idea. Several chapters cover the life of Walt Disney. Disney's ideas started with a mouse and evolved into movies, the large variety of entertainment venues at the parks, and one of the most popular brands today. Tough economic times for the company are also part of the story. A quote from Walt Disney is included to inspire young readers to develop their business idea. "Whatever you do, do it well." The book also includes a detailed timeline of the Walt Disney Company. A comprehensive bibliography of more resources to use in learning about the Disney Company is included in this fun book.

From An Idea to Disney is just one of the fun business books from Sichol. It has an ISBN of 978-1-328-45360-0.

Sichol's From An Idea to Nike is the second in her series about popular companies in the business world that will inspire young entrepreneurs. A biography of Phil Knight begins the story of Nike and his first steps in starting Nike. Marketing was at the top of the list of important steps in starting his company and the four P's of product, promotion, price, and place were important in the beginning days of Nike. Sichol includes a chapter on the reasons that companies go public with the main reason being to raise money. From An Idea to Nike is filled with fun facts about the company. Inspiring quotes from Knight are sprinkled throughout the book. A business timeline is included to trace the company from its beginnings to what is today a global company. Sichol includes a comprehensive list of Nike's Top Endorsement Deals and the conclusion of this fun read. A bibliography of other resources to learn about the company is also included.

Sichol's two books in her series of business books for young readers are great tools for teachers who may be teaching the basics of business in their classrooms now. Both the Disney empire and Nike are popular with children and are inspiring business models for learning about business.

*Make both books available in your classroom library. Use each to teach basic vocabulary from the business world. Engage students in discussions about how each started and what it took to get the companies on the path to being global companies.

*Both companies started with a simple idea. Engage students in a discussion about ideas that they have for businesses.

*Assign a creative writing project for students to write a business plan for a company that they envision. Offer the opportunity for students to work in groups to produce a presentation to make to the class about a company that they envision.