South Allen Street is alive and bubbly today with the eager entrepreneurs of tomorrow as the 38th Annual Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts commences with the Children and Youth Day Sidewalk sale.

Today, 175 children, ages eight to 18, will retail arts and crafts they have created.

The participants involved are required to produce and design wholly original crafts without the use of kits.

Sharon Frazier, who has been the coordinator of the event for six years, said she believes the day is important for local children because it gives them an idea of what it feels like to make money for something they themselves produced.

"I think it gives the children a real sense of achievement," Frazier said. "That the society they live in is willing to pay for something that they made."

Frazier recalled some of her favorites from years past: a child who used recycled CDs to make mirrors and clocks, another used only duck tape to create crafts, or one booth from which she made several purchases: film canisters made into mini first-aid kits.

"Obviously some of the products take more artistic ability than others, but they are all creative," she added.

Rick Bryant, another volunteer who helps with the workshops and the sale, said he thinks of the day as a lesson in entrepreneurship for children.

"[The sale] is a joyful mix of creativity and capitalism," Bryant said.

The day, however, is not only about making and spending money.

Bryant oversees the workshops around the sidewalk sale, which include face-painting, hat-making and other hands-on booths where children can create all sorts of crafts to take home, he said.

One of these workshops is done by the Penn State Center for Women Students.

In this workshop, the center's second year of participation in Youth Day, the group is working with student groups PHREE and Men Against Violence.

"We wanted to get involved to spread word of non-violence and provide avenues for college students to work with children," said Audra Hixson, the center's program coordinator.

At the workshop on Old Main lawn, children can make "happy heart" necklaces.

The idea is to decorate the necklaces with things that make each individual child feel good rather than hurt, Hixson said.

While the children benefit from such workshops, Frazier said the most rewarding part of the whole event is walking around and talking to the kids and admiring their work.

"Kids are such a big resource in our country," he said. "I'm just glad that we take the time to say 'good job.' How else are they going to grow up to be [self-assured adults]?"

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The Children and Youth Day Sidewalk Sale begins tomorrow, putting the kids in charge.