Third-grader Channing Bailey gestured to sheets of paper while in front of a classroom at Cumberland County Elementary School, that showed drawings and concepts for his idea to open a pizzeria in which robots would serve the cuisine and provide entertainment.

Fellow classmates raised their hands to ask questions.

One classmate asked what would happen if the robots decided to turn against the humans.

“They’re not,” Channing assured the class.

The third-grade math class took the morning to celebrate good ideas, hosted in part by the Longwood Small Business Development Center (SBDC) on Friday.

SBDC Executive Director Sheri McGuire said the center received a letter from Channing describing the idea he had had to open the pizzeria. It was the first time the SBDC received a business idea from a child.

According to a copy of the letter provided by SBDC, Channing wrote on lined paper that the pizzeria could benefit the community.

“It would make a lot of children happy,” the letter from Channing read, “just tell the scientists not to make (the robots) scary.”

McGuire said if children are taught early to see that their creative ideas could better their communities, they may be more likely to use their abilities to better their environment as adults.

“Channing’s letter to the SBDC truly inspired us, particularly since, at such a young age, he took the initiative to share a need that he saw in the community,” McGuire said in a statement. “He imagined a concept of a kid-friendly pizza establishment with entertainment and even drew pictures of what he thought it should look like. We decided to visit the classroom to encourage the kids and to share how important it is for them to use their imaginations to think about how to make their community better and build successful opportunities.”

Barnes & Noble at Longwood Store Manager Amber Clark provided five copies of the book “What Do You Do with an Idea?” by Kobi Yamada to donate to the elementary school library. McGuire read the book to students during the event.

Clark spoke about her own experience bringing her idea to life: converting the once-empty building on North Main Street in Farmville into the current Barnes & Noble bookstore location.

Letterpress Communications and a television station based in Norfolk were in attendance to record the event.

Using journals that McGuire provided, each of the 12 students in the class drafted their own business ideas. One student wanted to distribute cookies that she baked and decorated. Another student shared her idea to make “cool cars,” which would have numerous luxury features and include eight seats.

Channing said the idea to open the pizzeria came from the video game Five Nights at Freddy’s.

After the presentation and after students shared their ideas, they were surprised with pizza for lunch courtesy of Effingham’s restaurant at the Hotel Weyanoke.

Cumberland County Superintendent Dr. Amy Griffin said that the school was proud to help the students realize their ideas.

“It was exciting to see community and business leaders from the Longwood Small Business Development Center, Barnes and Noble, Letterpress, and Effingham’s take the time from their busy schedules to teach our third-graders about entrepreneurship and small business development,” Griffin said in a statement. “I greatly appreciate their response to a student’s letter and planting a seed in our future movers and shakers.”

Cumberland County Elementary School Principal Virginia Gills said she was moved by the response from the SBDC and McGuire.

“Even by simply acknowledging Channing’s letter, students learned that their ideas matter,” Gills said. “Taking it further by coming to school, discussing it, really validated student voice. I’m beyond grateful to Sheri, Ilsa (Loeser), and all who made this day one that our students will remember. This definitely had a positive impact on our students.”

The school also operates what’s called a WAGI lab (which stands for What a Great Idea). The WAGI lab provides an atmosphere in which students collaborate on an idea and bring it to fruition.

Earlier in the school year, students collaborated to come up with a solution to littering in the county. Their solution was a machine that could pick up litter and properly dispose it. They also came up with a song and a mascot, which was a trashcan with paper-mache trash.

One student may have voiced the consensus of the class by saying, after having pizza, “Best day ever.”