M & M Marketing & More

Make math and marketing concepts a little sweeter with a hands-on M&M activity!

Using a bag of M&M candies to represent a crop, students will learn about futures markets and commodity prices.

The lesson incorporates basic economic concepts and math calculations adaptable for 4th to 8th grades.

Before they open the bag, students predict how many candies of each color.

Once the bag is opened and the candies are counted, students choose how to market their “crop” and maximize profits.

Lesson extensions can also include calculating averages and making bar graphs.

Upper level grades can gain more experience with futures markets using free simulations at www.commoditychallenge.com.

Find the lesson plan from Illinois Ag in the Classroom here.

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Farm Fresh Podcast: McLean County Ag By the Numbers

Agriculture contributes $1.6 billion to the McLean County economy. Dive deeper into the numbers with Mike Doherty, Senior Economist with Illinois Farm Bureau for this week’s Farm Fresh Podcast.

Tune in every week to hear the Farm to Table segment on WJBC radio at 12:45 p.m. Wednesdays.