I’m afraid our table did not exactly amass the droves of penny-frenzied parents and children we had originally calculated, and I think this comes down to two factors: 1) we were not giving out free plastic hourglasses (tooth-brushing timekeepers) like our neighbors the dentists; and 2) Micah and I do not play the violin. Most of the adults we spoke to were lingering around our table hoping to score a free toothbrush next door. Nevertheless, we were able to reel in a good amount of children to create art for our “Sea of Caring,” and herein lies the most important lesson I learned that day: the learning true value of the Penny Harvest will not come solely from a speech Micah or I make to a passing parent— but it can be seen simply in the artwork and writing of a child.

Let me explain. The Sea of Caring is a variation on the popular Wheel of Caring lesson, which Common Cents encourages all Penny Harvest teachers to implement before beginning their Harvests. Classes choose a community issue, like hunger, or cancer, or homelessness, to write on a large pizza-slice shaped piece of paper. When every class puts together their pieces, the school has a Wheel of Caring to display in the hallway or office.

At the Orientation Fair, Micah and I brought a table-sized sheet of paper decorated with some coral, a treasure box, and a mermaid— our Sea of Caring— and a hundred cut-out paper fish. Then we asked kids what issues in their communities matter to them, and to write them down on the fish. One child wrote “Feed all the hungry children.” Another one simply put “Education!” Soon our Sea was covered in little philanthropic fish wearing messages like “Stop littering!” “I want to help my mommy,” and “No drugs.”

Once the Sea started filling up parents took notice. “What’s this?” they’d ask, intrigued by serious nature of the crayon scribbled fish. Or they’d smile as they watched their child thinking of a way to help their neighbors. “What do we do at home?” they’d ask their kid. “We recycle!” Sometimes people would even come to us before stopping at the dentists. A few children came back to fill out more fish.

It turns out that the children are the real experts on the Penny Harvest. After all, it’s the kids who collect all those pennies, and it’s the kids who think of the issues, and it’s the kids who make the grants to the community organizations. Micah and I… well… if anybody asks, we’re experts too.