Why lemonade stands are good for kids

The lemonade stand is often a child’s first foray into business. It helps kids understand the value of money—how to earn it, and why it’s important to have it. Lemonade stands also let kids exercise their creativity by making posters or turning their stands into games—something that helps kids develop professional skills, do better in school, and improve cognitive function.

It’s also a great opportunity for parents to encourage kids to donate to charity: The Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, for example, allows kids to register lemonade stands through their websites and donate the proceeds to the foundation, which invests it into research for new treatments and cures for children battling cancer. Over the years, the foundation says it has raised over $150 million and funded more than 800 research projects for this worthy cause.

Country Time’s initiative might very well be more of a publicity stunt than anything else. But in supporting lemonade stands, the company is telling kids that their childhoods don’t have to always be regulated and fined. And they’re teaching kids that, “when life gives you arcane laws, make lemonade.”

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