Course Snapshot
Who: Middle School Explorers
Grades: 6th–8th Grade Students
Enrollment: Open for Fall & Spring
Duration: 13 Weeks of Adventure
Investment: $300 / Semester
Seat Limit: Max 15 per Class
Learning: Hands-on & Project-led
Building foundations for the future. Entrepreneur Explorer: Leadership & Business Foundations offers students a practical look into building concepts, fostering confidence and leadership through real-world scenarios without the pressure of a full business plan.
What Students Will Explore
In Entrepreneur Explorer, students move from understanding business concepts to beginning their own entrepreneurial exploration. Through team activities and individual projects, they will learn to see the world through an entrepreneurial lens.
Explore Ideas
Brainstorming sessions where students learn how to turn basic interests and hobbies into potentially viable business ideas.
Build Confidence
Learning how to talk to potential "customers" (peers and family) to find out what people actually want or need.
Create and Present
Interactive games and projects designed to build communication, collaboration, and creative problem-solving skills.
Weekly Course Outline
Each week builds on the last, helping students move from business concepts to a final entrepreneurial presentation.
Week 1: What Is Entrepreneurship?
Introduction to business concepts, why companies exist, problem-solving, and beginning to spot opportunities.
Week 2: Discovering Your Strengths
Exploring personal interests, strengths, and how those can turn into entrepreneurial ideas.
Week 3: Understanding Customer Needs
Learning about empathy, simple market research, and how to identify what customers are looking for.
Week 4: Business Communication Basics
Practicing active listening, clear speaking, and beginning to ask professional questions.
Week 5: Group Project & Peer Feedback
Working with peers to develop ideas and learning how to give and receive helpful feedback.
Week 6: Introduction to Branding
Exploring how businesses use names, logos, and stories to share their ideas with others.
Week 7: Sharing Your Idea
Practicing how to explain a business concept to others clearly and confidently.
Week 8: Basic Business Planning
Beginning to map out the steps needed to take an idea toward a beginning business stage.
Week 9: Doing Business the Right Way
Discussing honesty, building a good reputation, and why trust matters in business.
Week 10: Money & Costs
Learning about revenue, expenses, and simple business costs to understand how money works in a company.
Week 11: Adapting to Challenges
Exploring how to handle simple challenges and learning from mistakes to make an idea better.
Week 12: Leadership Basics
Learning what it means to lead a team and how to motivate others toward a common goal.
Week 13: Final Course Presentations
Students present their business concept, target customer, and beginning marketing plan while explaining why the idea is exciting.
Guest Speakers and Community Connection
During the course, students will hear from guest speakers who share their real-world experience and answer student questions. These inclusive sessions help students connect course concepts to actual business ownership, community leadership, and various career pathways.
Final Project:
Business Idea Showcase
By the end of the course, students will have developed a professional business concept and prepared a final presentation. Instead of launching a full business, students focus on the beginning stages of entrepreneurship—learning how to explore their ideas, define a target audience, and structure a plan for a future venture. Students create a business concept and do not need a full business plan.
The final project gives middle school students a meaningful way to apply beginning business concepts and practice communicating their ideas with confidence.
Course Pathway
Empowering students through a progressive journey of leadership and business exploration, from initial discovery to advanced execution.
Current: Middle School
Entrepreneur Explorer: Leadership & Business Foundations. Students focus on the beginning stages—learning how to explore ideas, define a target audience, and structure a concept plan.
Future: High School
Launch Your Future: Advanced Entrepreneurship & Leadership. A comprehensive deep dive into business planning, market execution, and professional mentorship for career readiness.
The Foundation of Entrepreneurial Success
While students focus on business concepts, the course experience is rooted in character development, leadership, and ethical decision-making. We believe that who a student is matters as much as what they build.
Students learn to lead themselves before leading others, developing discipline and work ethic that carries into every area of their middle school life and beyond.
Leadership Journey
Community Mindset
We emphasize that business is about serving others. Students explore how their ideas can solve community problems and add value to the lives of those around them.
Registration and Waitlist
Families may register by paying directly or by using approved homeschool vendor, charter school, or organization funding. All registrations require parent/guardian consent and payment confirmation before a seat is finalized. If the current session is full, please join our waitlist.
Pay Directly
Use this option if your family will pay for the course directly at registration.
Organization Funding
Use this option if your homeschool program or organization will be paying through invoice. Vendor-funded seats are finalized upon receipt.
Parent Information
All middle school students must have a parent or guardian review behavioral expectations. While students focus on exploration, we emphasize a positive learning environment. Cast Forward provides documentation for families using this course for parent-directed education or charter school requirements.