BY KARISSA MILLER

East Iredell Elementary School’s Academically or Intellectually Gifted (AIG) students are serving up hot chocolate, cookies and other sweet treats as part of a unique fundraiser for their school this week.

The hot chocolate bar and snacks were served on Monday and will be served again on Thursday from 8 to 10:30 a.m.

The fourth-grade AIG students have been working on a project to create a business plan for a hot chocolate bar, and all of the proceeds will benefit their school.

Karalee Rikard said that the students made posters to advertise the event. The goal is to help their school pay off students’ lunchroom debt. They have invited parents and school district employees to come see their store front in action.

By 9:20 a.m. on Monday, they had already served about 40 customers.

“This is really fun to me,” said student Joseph Garcia. “I think the fun part is knowing that I’m helping people.”

With a steady line of student and staff customers, fourth-grader Norlis Velasquez dispensed hot chocolate and told patrons about their homemade cookies and other snacks to go along with it.

Some of the baked goods, including cookies and chocolate-dipped pretzels, were made by students.

The students said many customers told them to keep the change. However, the students who are math savvy will let them know of other items that they could purchase with the remainder of the money.

They also made recommendations to students on different combinations that they could purchase with the money they had.

East Iredell is a “Lighthouse Leader in Me School.” Students learn and practice Stephen Covey’s Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. The habits include being proactive, beginning with the end in mind, putting first things first, thinking win-win, seeking first to understand and then be understood, synergize, and sharpen the saw.

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