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Selling Snacks

Mikey Wren makes money with his own vending machine business 

October 2020
By Jennifer Hackett

Courtesy of Mikey's Munchies

Mikey Wren in front of one of his vending machines

When Michael “Mikey” Wren was 8 years old, he wanted a snack from a colorful vending machine. His mom told him that every vending machine is owned by someone. When a person buys a snack from a machine, its owner gets the money. Then Mikey thought, “I want a vending machine!” 

Mikey now owns 12 snack and soft drink machines across St. Louis, Missouri. They’re part of his vending machine business, Mikey’s Munchies. 

Michael “Mikey” Wren was 8 years old. He wanted a snack from a vending machine. His mom told him that every vending machine is owned by someone. People buy snacks from a machine. The owner of the machine gets the money. Mikey thought, “I want a vending machine!”

Mikey now owns 12 snack and soft drink machines. They are located in St. Louis, Missouri. The machines are part of his vending machine business. The business is called Mikey’s Munchies.

Mikey started his business by setting up a lemonade stand to help  raise money to buy his first two machines. Since then, Mikey, now 13, has invested in more machines with the money he’s earned. 

Every Monday and Tuesday, Mikey goes to each of his vending machines before school starts. He collects the money earned from sales since his last visit. Then he refills the machines with more snacks and drinks. He tracks the sales of each item he sells with an app. Each weekend, he goes shopping for snacks to refill his machines. Mikey’s best-seller? Cheez-Its! 

Mikey started by setting up a lemonade stand. The stand helped him raise money. He used that money to buy his first two machines. Mikey is now 13. He has invested in more machines with the money he’s earned.

Mikey goes to each of his vending machines every Monday and Tuesday. He checks them before school starts. He collects the money earned from sales since his last visit. Then he refills the machines with more snacks and drinks. He tracks the sales of each item he sells. He uses an app to track them. He goes shopping each weekend. He buys snacks to refill his machines. The item that Mikey sells the most is Cheez-Its!

Courtesy of Mikey's Munchies

Courtesy of Mikey's Munchies

But Mikey doesn’t just run his business. He also teaches business classes! He shows other kids how to start their own businesses. Each class includes how to make a budget, which is a plan for how to spend money. 

“I think this is important because it’ll make our world a better place,” Mikey says. “There will be more jobs for people.” 

Mikey doesn’t just run his business. He also teaches business classes! He shows other kids how to start their own businesses. Each class includes how to make a budget. A budget is a plan for how to spend money.

“I think this is important because it’ll make our world a better place,” Mikey says. “There will be more jobs for people.”

MATH TALK

What math skills do you think are most important for running a business? 

MATH TALK

What math skills do you think are most important for running a business? 

Comparing Decimals

What to Do

A decimal is a number written with a decimal point, which separates the whole part from the fractional part. A place value chart shows the value of each digit based on its position. It can help you compare decimals. 

Example

A bag of chips in one of Mikey’s machines costs $1.20. A bottled soft drink costs $1.75. Which item costs more?

  • Compare the columns from left to right. The place value with the higher number is the more expensive item.
  • 7 tenths is greater than 2 tenths (0.7 > 0.2). 

So the bottled soft drink ($1.75) costs more.

Comparing Decimals

What to Do

A decimal is a number written with a decimal point, which separates the whole part from the fractional part. A place value chart shows the value of each digit based on its position. It can help you compare decimals. 

Example

A bag of chips in one of Mikey’s machines costs $1.20. A bottled soft drink costs $1.75. Which item costs more?

  • Compare the columns from left to right. The place value with the higher number is the more expensive item.
  • 7 tenths is greater than 2 tenths (0.7 > 0.2). 

So the bottled soft drink ($1.75) costs more.

A. In a vending machine, a bag of pretzels costs $1.25. A bag of cheese crackers costs $1.20. Write those numbers in the chart below.

B. Which snack costs more? Explain. 

A. In a vending machine, a bag of pretzels costs $1.25. A bag of cheese crackers costs $1.20. Write those numbers in the chart below.

B. Which snack costs more? Explain. 

A. A package of cookies from a vending machine costs $0.75. A package of fruit pastries costs $1.10. Which item costs less?

B. Which item has a greater value in the tenths place?

A. A package of cookies from a vending machine costs $0.75. A package of fruit pastries costs $1.10. Which item costs less?

B. Which item has a greater value in the tenths place?

A vending machine sells candy bars for $0.90, packs of gum for $0.65, bags of fruit gummies for $0.50, and soft drink cans for $0.55. Order the items from least to most expensive.

A vending machine sells candy bars for $0.90, packs of gum for $0.65, bags of fruit gummies for $0.50, and soft drink cans for $0.55. Order the items from least to most expensive.

After a day of sales, one of Mikey’s vending machines earned $95.30. A second vending machine earned $95.05. Mikey’s friend says that the second vending machine earned more money. Is Mikey’s friend correct? Why or why not? 

After a day of sales, one of Mikey’s vending machines earned $95.30. A second vending machine earned $95.05. Mikey’s friend says that the second vending machine earned more money. Is Mikey’s friend correct? Why or why not? 

Continue the Learning Journey

  • Play the game “Aim for the Line” (above) to practice your number ordering skills.
  • Look through a grocery circular, store ad, or newspaper (at home or online) and record 5 different prices. Draw a place value chart and use it to compare the costs. Which item costs the most? Which costs the least?
  • If you owned your own vending machine, what would you stock it with? Draw your own vending machine and label the rows of snacks that are available for people to buy. Don’t forget to include price tags!

Continue the Learning Journey

  • Play the game “Aim for the Line” (above) to practice your number ordering skills.
  • Look through a grocery circular, store ad, or newspaper (at home or online) and record 5 different prices. Draw a place value chart and use it to compare the costs. Which item costs the most? Which costs the least?
  • If you owned your own vending machine, what would you stock it with? Draw your own vending machine and label the rows of snacks that are available for people to buy. Don’t forget to include price tags!
Number & Operations
Comparing Decimals
place value chart

A chart that labels a number based on each digit’s location (or place value)        

Example: a place value chart for 175 would label 1 in the hundreds place, 7 in the tens place, and 5 in the ones place
decimal

A number that contains a decimal point. The decimal parts are the place values to the right of the decimal point

Example: 8.7 is a decimal number that can be read as 8 and 7 tenths.

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