Youngest entrepreneurs show their stuff | Education - Northwest Georgia News

March 06, 2019 at 09:44AM

Some of Rome's future entrepreneurs put their talent to the test at Darlington School on Tuesday. Fourth graders participated in an Invention Convention, complete with a Shark Tank like pitch to teachers and staff to generate interest in their project.

Teacher Elisabeth Lawson said teachers realized how talented some of the kids were and wanted to give them an opportunity to come up with their own business solutions to real world problems.

"That helped them to be a lot more invested in going through a scientific process and trying to test out different versions of what they wanted to see happen," Lawson said.

Sara Jo Pierce developed the "Command Pet Door", using smartphone technology and an app that allows dog owners to open and close a doggie door remotely. Sara Jo said she got the idea because her mom didn't seem to have the time to walk her dog. Her creation has a rain gauge and a thermometer that would override the command to open the door in the event it was too cold or raining.

William Holmes developed "Mr. Clean 2.0," a robotic cleaner that can be controlled remotely to clean up around the house.

"It works really well on hardwood floors and carpets both," Holmes said

Sara Shropshire, a competition cheerleader, created a cheerleading trainer called "I Fly." Young girls can stand on the device and perfect their acrobatic techniques without the need for a base cheerleader.

Molly Ledbetter developed a "Powerless Pan" to help out in the kitchen. The device uses radiant heat to aid in the cooking process.

The whole exercise crossed curriculum in science, language arts and design thinking.

"They did persuasive speeches, because we were all Sharks this morning and we had to choose who were going to invest in," Lawson said.

Ashley Evans opted to invest in Avery Klawon's Cheer Life, Thad Mathis chose Ella Peer's Handy Helper and Lawson made an offer for Pierce's Command Pet Door.