Few could argue whether parents shop for value and nutrition when planning children's lunches. Families may encourage kids to pack their own lunches to foster responsibility or they may strictly monitor what goes into the lunch bag to insure proper nutrition. In sum, parents care about what their children are eating and work hard to meet their children's needs. Some may even admonish children to eat everything in the lunch bag, not waste food, chew, chew, chew, and most important, "do not trade the food I've bought for you!"

Against our best intentions, when the kids come to St. John the Evangelist, all bets are off, according to a recent study of the 5th grade class, conducted by Karen Campion ('03). Karen observed lunch periods and the trading behavior among students in the class as part of her sociology research. Armed with economic theories that govern adult transactions, networks that influence the value of trades and studies of child behavior, she discovered a whole economy taking place in Mrs. Friedman's classroom. As we adults are wont to wax nostalgic over playing kick-the-can in the alley or building cities of sand castles or conducting elaborate baseball card trades with nary an adult in sight, these children, according to Karen, have developed a sophisticated, rule-bound economy for food trades neither dictated nor influenced by adults. Ah, childhood is still alive and well!

Karen "expected to find that the students' trades were not the result of objective economic calculations of relative cost and benefit, but rather reflective of their friendships, social status in the class, and a set of unspoken rules regulating what is desirable and appropriate in a trade." In other words, the trades reflect more than their comparative costs at say, Giant or Sniders. During her observations, she was surprised to find that every child in the class participated in at least one trade. There were distinct differences in the amount of trading within the all boy network as compared to the all girl network. The boys did much more trading. She attributed this to a more robust network among the boys as they outnumber the girls. In fact, Karen even witnessed trading across gender lines, "the relative openness of the networks is a result of a common understanding among the students that trades and gifts between boys and girls, while not necessarily preferable to single-gender trades, are certainly permissible." Karen also discovered that children often simply gave gifts of food instead of expecting a trade, evidencing, "…ongoing relationships with each other. Because they are sure of future interactions, they can afford to give gifts and are not constrained to trading because of worries about fairness."

Karen uncovered unwritten rules like, "sandwiches are never traded" and "the class had clearly come to a consensus about stealing, and where to draw the line between playfulness and outright theft…and the students were not loath to chastise those breaking the rules." Unlike the choirboys marooned on a desert island in Lord of the Flies, the SJE children had developed a respectable set of rules governing their non-adult directed economy in the classroom. A certain 'freedom to give' is retained within this economy. Perhaps we can breathe a sigh, assured that the children have come to know one another with a comfort that allows standards of righteousness to give way to spontaneous giving. This has evolved into or results from their having built a community with agreed upon rules, receptivity to enforcement and a generosity that comes naturally.

Back home, bags are rustled around the kitchen table, carrots are sliced and peanut butter spread. Mom or Dad chant the morning chorus, "eat everything in the lunch bag, and by no means trade food with your classmates," knowing full well that trades will happen. The secret is out. For those buying lunch items, you may wish to know that according to Karen's observations, Funyions and popcorn are poor trades (requiring a lot of volume) while fried chicken ranks at the top.