Some parents may have done a double take yesterday morning when their children picked up their lunch boxes and headed for the door saying: ''see ya after work.''
Pupils at Kaikorai Primary School have been getting a taste of the real world during the past two weeks by applying for jobs, receiving training and providing goods and services for companies created within the school.
Principal Simon Clarke said there were 17 companies, each led by a different teacher.
''There's a real range of companies. There's a beauty salon, a bank, a warehouse, an arcade, a cafe, a fashion and photo company, craft-making companies, a jewellery company and some food companies; a real variety of goods and services.''
Mr Clarke said last week, the pupils had to fill out job applications, get references from their parents and friends, write cover letters, create a CV and post them to the company they wanted to work for.
This week, they have been learning from experts in the community, about how to make or provide the products or services of their company.
For example, the jewellery company received advice from a jeweller and pupils working in the school's bank had someone from Westpac come in to talk to them about currency and security.
Yesterday, the pupils were putting their new-found skills into action and producing goods and services for the Kaikville Market Day, to be held at the school today.
In return for all their hard work, pupils were paid wages in the form of Kaikville dollars, and had special bank accounts set up to hold the currency.
Pupils would be able to spend the money at the market day, he said.
''This is giving them all real life experience and real life skills.
''We want them to walk away at the end of it knowing it's not about money; it's about how to make decisions and the sorts of challenges that people face in the community.
''They've had to look at issues of minimum wage. They've been asking the question: is it fair that some groups are going to get paid more than others? And they've been discussing advertising standards.
''It's about solving problems in a creative way, and the teacher is in the background helping them, giving them examples of what happens in the real world.
''We hope that because it's a real problem for them, they'll become more interested in it and understand it even better than if we gave them a written-down problem which would cause them to just glaze over.''
Mr Clarke said parents had been invited to attend the market day, where they could buy Kaikville dollars ($NZ1 will buy four Kaikville dollars) and all proceeds from the event would be sent to charities, such as the Nepalese Earthquake Appeal.
