When most people hear “entrepreneurship program for kids,” they picture a lemonade stand worksheet.
Junior Shark Tank is something different. Over 8 weeks, students identify a real problem in their school or community, develop a business concept to solve it, conduct actual market research, build out pricing and logistics, design a brand, and present a formal pitch to a panel of judges.
Third graders do this. Fifth graders do this. And the results — every single time — surprise the adults in the room.
How the Program Works
Junior Shark Tank runs as an 8-week after-school program, meeting 2 to 3 times per week. Students work in small teams of 3 to 5. Each team moves through a structured curriculum:
- Weeks 1–2: Problem Discovery. Teams research real problems at their school or in their neighborhood. What’s broken? What’s missing? What do people need that they don’t have?
- Weeks 3–4: Concept Development. Teams develop their solution — the product or service, how it works, who it’s for.
- Weeks 5–6: Market Research and Financials. How much would it cost to make? What would people pay? Teams conduct real surveys and build basic financial models.
- Week 7: Pitch Preparation. Teams build their slide deck and rehearse. Instructors run mock panels so students know what to expect.
- Week 8: Final Presentations. Teams present to a panel of judges — teachers, administrators, community members, or local business partners. Winners are recognized. Every team completes.
What Students Actually Learn
The pitch is the visible outcome. What happens underneath it is harder to see but more important.
Students learn to identify problems — a skill that transfers to every academic subject and to adult life. They learn to research before deciding — to test their assumptions against actual data. They learn to speak in front of people about something they built — one of the most consistently cited skills that employers say new workers lack.
And they learn that being wrong is a step, not a verdict. Teams that pivot in week four — who throw out their original idea because the research didn’t support it — consistently produce better final pitches than teams that never doubted themselves.
What Principals Tell Us
The most common reaction from principals after their first Junior Shark Tank final presentation is some version of: I had no idea they could do that.
That reaction isn’t about the program. It’s about the kids. Junior Shark Tank works because it gives students a real task with real stakes and gets out of the way. The bar it sets is the bar they rise to.
Schools that run it consistently see it become one of the most talked-about programs on campus — by students, parents, and teachers. It generates the kind of word-of-mouth that fills enrollment for the following semester before registration even opens.
How to Bring It to Your School
Junior Shark Tank runs as part of Kodely’s after-school enrichment programming in California and New York public schools. It can be offered as a standalone 8-week program or as part of a multi-subject enrichment block alongside other Kodely programs.
Funding: The program qualifies for ELOP, ASES, Title IV-A (Well-Rounded Education), and LCAP funds in California. New York schools can use Title I and expanded learning budget allocations.
Timeline: Schools that reach out in April or May can have Junior Shark Tank running by September. We handle staff hiring, curriculum delivery, and all logistics. Your job is to show up to the final presentation.
Contact Kodely to bring Junior Shark Tank to your school for fall 2026.