The 2026 Curriculum
Five Real Enterprises. One Integrated Education.
Why We Don’t Teach Subjects
Traditional schools take a unified world and artificially fracture it into isolated subjects. Math from 8:00-8:50. Science from 9:00-9:50. English from 10:00-10:50. The student then has to mentally re-integrate these fragments—which they rarely do successfully.
The result? Students who can pass a math test but cannot calculate whether a business is profitable. Students who can write an essay but cannot compose a persuasive sales letter. Students who know photosynthesis as a vocabulary word but cannot explain why their tomato plants are dying.
At Unrivaled Academy, we organize learning around real enterprises rather than arbitrary subjects. Knowledge stays connected because life is connected.
Learning Organized by Human Needs
We organize our curriculum around Maslow’s hierarchy of human needs—not arbitrary academic categories. This creates learning with inherent meaning. Students aren’t studying abstract subjects. They’re learning to meet the needs that define human existence.
SUSTENANCE — Meeting Physical Needs
Learning to feed yourself and your family. Enterprises: Flowers, Microgreens, Baked Goods.
SHELTER — Meeting Safety Needs
Learning to maintain and improve property. Enterprises: Pressure Washing, future construction and repair.
CONNECTION — Meeting Belonging Needs
Building relationships through customer service, market presence, and community engagement.
MASTERY — Meeting Esteem Needs
Developing expertise and earning recognition. Enterprises: 3D Printing, advanced technical skills.
PURPOSE — Meeting Self-Actualization Needs
Creating legacy and teaching others. Master-level students design systems, train younger students, and build lasting value.
2026 Enterprise Portfolio
Five integrated enterprises serving the same customer base through multiple channels. Each enterprise reinforces the others while developing distinct capabilities.
Flower Business
Domain: Sustenance | Season: Spring-Fall | Status: Active
Cut flowers and arrangements—zinnias, sunflowers, marigolds, seasonal varieties. Students learn the full cycle from seed to sale.
What Students Learn:
- Mathematics: Counting inventory, calculating profit margins, making change, measuring planting depths
- Science: Growing conditions, soil composition, seasonal timing, plant biology, pest management
- Business: Customer service, pricing strategy, market booth operations, pre-order management
- Art & Design: Color theory, arrangement principles, presentation and display
Microgreens Operation
Domain: Sustenance | Season: Year-round | Status: Launching
Fresh microgreens—sunflower, pea shoots, radish, broccoli—grown in our garage setup with shelving and grow lights. 7-14 days from seed to harvest.
What Students Learn:
- Mathematics: Seed density calculations, germination rate percentages, subscription revenue forecasting
- Science: Photosynthesis, environmental factors (temperature, humidity, airflow), food safety
- Business: Subscription management, customer retention, restaurant account development
- Operations: Weekly production cycles, inventory planning, quality control
- Revenue Model: Weekly subscriptions ($10-15/week), farmers market sales ($5-8/container), restaurant wholesale.
Microgreens Operation
Domain: Sustenance | Season: Year-round | Status: Launching
Fresh microgreens—sunflower, pea shoots, radish, broccoli—grown in our garage setup with shelving and grow lights. 7-14 days from seed to harvest.
What Students Learn:
- Mathematics: Seed density calculations, germination rate percentages, subscription revenue forecasting
- Science: Photosynthesis, environmental factors (temperature, humidity, airflow), food safety
- Business: Subscription management, customer retention, restaurant account development
- Operations: Weekly production cycles, inventory planning, quality control
- Revenue Model: Weekly subscriptions ($10-15/week), farmers market sales ($5-8/container), restaurant wholesale.
Baked Goods
Domain: Sustenance | Season: Year-round | Status: Launching
Bread, cookies, brownies, and specialty items under Texas Cottage Food Law. Students choose their signature products and own the outcomes.
What Students Learn:
- Mathematics: Measuring fractions, scaling recipes, cost per batch, pricing for profit margin
- Science: Chemistry of leavening, gluten development, Maillard reaction, food safety
- Business: Product development, market testing, order management, compliant labeling
- Character: Consistency, quality standards, taking ownership of results
- Texas Cottage Food: Direct sales up to $50k/year, no license required, must label appropriately.
Pressure Washing Service
Domain: Shelter | Season: Spring-Fall | Status: Launching
Driveways, sidewalks, patios, fences, house siding. Students operate equipment with Dad present for safety. Starting with value-for-value to build skills and reputation.
What Students Learn:
- Mathematics: Square footage calculation, job estimation, pricing per square foot, profit analysis
- Science: Surface types and techniques, cleaning chemistry, equipment mechanics
- Business: Professional conduct, customer communication, before/after documentation
- Safety: Non-negotiable protocols for eye protection, footwear, and equipment handling
- Market rates: Driveway $75-150, Sidewalk $30-60, Patio $50-100, House siding $150-300.
Pressure Washing Service
Domain: Shelter | Season: Spring-Fall | Status: Launching
Driveways, sidewalks, patios, fences, house siding. Students operate equipment with Dad present for safety. Starting with value-for-value to build skills and reputation.
What Students Learn:
- Mathematics: Square footage calculation, job estimation, pricing per square foot, profit analysis
- Science: Surface types and techniques, cleaning chemistry, equipment mechanics
- Business: Professional conduct, customer communication, before/after documentation
- Safety: Non-negotiable protocols for eye protection, footwear, and equipment handling
- Market rates: Driveway $75-150, Sidewalk $30-60, Patio $50-100, House siding $150-300.
3D Printing Manufacturing
Domain: Mastery | Season: Year-round | Status: Earning Phase
Custom printed items: plant markers, cookie cutters, phone stands, nameplates, cable organizers. This enterprise must be earned—funded through pressure washing profits.
The Lesson: Assets Before Consumption
Shepherd funds his 3D printer through pressure washing earnings. This teaches the core wealth-building principle: earnings get reinvested into productive assets, not consumed.
What Students Learn:
- Technology: CAD software, slicer programs, machine operation, troubleshooting
- Mathematics: Coordinates, material costs, production costing, pricing models
- Business: Custom order management, product development, cross-selling with other enterprises
- Character: Delayed gratification, investment thinking, asset building
- Integration: 3D printing supports all enterprises—plant markers for flowers, humidity domes for microgreens, cookie cutters for baking, display items for market booth.
How the Enterprises Work Together
- Same customer base: Every neighbor is a potential customer for all five enterprises
- Farmers market presence: One booth sells flowers, microgreens, baked goods, and 3D printed items
- Year-round revenue: Microgreens, baked goods, and 3D printing generate income when flowers are dormant
- Cross-selling: Pressure washing customer becomes flower customer becomes microgreens subscriber
- Age-appropriate roles: Younger students contribute to microgreens and baking; older students lead outdoor enterprises
One Enterprise, All Subjects
Consider a student running the Flower Business. Through this single enterprise, he is learning:
- Mathematics: counting inventory, calculating profit margins, making change
- Science: growing conditions, soil chemistry, seasonal timing
- Reading: researching varieties, reading seed packets, learning from guides
- Writing: record-keeping, labels, marketing materials
- Art: arrangement, color theory, presentation
- Business: customer service, pricing strategy, supply chain
Character: perseverance through failure, responsibility, ownership
He learns all of these simultaneously because they all serve the same purpose. The knowledge is connected because life is connected.
Demonstration Over Testing
We don’t test knowledge in isolation. We observe capability in context. A student demonstrates competence by doing real work that meets real standards for real purposes.
Four Types of Evidence:
- Product Evidence: What has the student created, built, grown, or produced?
- Performance Evidence: How does the student handle real situations with real customers?
- Process Evidence: Does the student plan, keep records, learn from mistakes?
- Teaching Evidence: Can the student teach others? This is the highest proof of mastery.