Schools all around the globe try to earn money for their schools every year. It can get hard to think of new and exciting ideas that people will actually want to participate in, to bring in money for your school. If you’re having a hard time thinking up ways to earn money for your school, take a look at these five suggestions below.
1. Fundraiser’s: The most obvious way to raise money for your school is by participating in a fundraiser. There are many fundraiser’s that will give your school a percentage of the money earned when you sell their products. You need to research fundraiser’s thoroughly and pick a reputable company that sells items people will want to buy from your children. They have fundraiser’s for books, magazines, candy bars, candles and just about anything else you can think of. To help get you started, visit this link and they’ll send you a free kit of their products to sell: http://www.efundraising.com/Default.aspxpartner=efundraising&partner;=fundraiserhelp
2. Fiesta Night: Everyone loves a party and by holding a Fiesta Night, you bring in money for your school. A Fiesta Night can be held in your school’s cafeteria. You can look for a food supplier that will give you a deal on the meat and ask the parents at your school if they have any contacts that would give your school a good price on items needed. You can serve deep pitt beef, beans, Mexican rice, and rolls You can bring in extra money by charging cheap prices for drinks and deserts in addition to the price you’re charging for dinner. Another idea is to put together a small gift basket and sell raffle tickets. Decorations and music add a nice touch to the celebration. Don’t limit people to only eating at the event, many people will order take out if you offer it.
3. Dollar Drive: A dollar drive is simply a piece of paper that has a brief description of how your school is trying to earn money for various events, equipment, etc. You have 25 lines on the page and next to each line you have one sentence that says something like:
I’ll be the first to give you a dollar
This is my last dollar
Sure, I can afford one dollar
I’m your tenth dollar
Here’s one smackeroo to help your school
I was saving my dollar for a rainy day, but you can have it
You’re in luck, here’s a buck
Hooray! I’m your last dollar
Then next to the sentence, the person donating can write their name. Most people can afford at least one dollar and even if only 4 kids per class turned in a sheet, image how much money that could bring in for your school and all it costs to do it is paper and ink. Another added touch of fun is offering an incentive to students, offer the class who brings in the most filled in sheets a pizza party or a fun item for the class.
4. School Yard Sale: A school yard sale can be done in one of two ways. You can either charge $10 or $15 and rent a small space to parents who want sell some of their items at a group yard sale. By charging them a fee to use the school, they get to keep the profits from whatever they sell. If you’re afraid that not many people would participate that way, then your school could collect donations for a month or longer and then sell everything that way. The school would get to keep the profits from the items sold. A good place to have the yard sale could be in the school football field, cafeteria, or parking lot. Putting an ad in the newspaper, posting signs in the neighborhood and sending a note home to students is good exposure and will get people to come to the school yard sale.
5. School Carnival: A school carnival is a fun way for students and parents to help support their school. Ask parents and their resources for donations of their time, pies, cakes, cookies, candy, hot dogs, and prizes. The school will need to chip in with items of course but get as much as possible from donations so the school can make a profit. Put together gift baskets from each grade (Kindergarten, 1st Grade, Second Grade and so on) with a different theme and raffle them off. A good price for raffle tickets is $1.00 and people will usually buy more if they are affordable. You can have pie walks, bean bag throws and more. It’s up to your school to decide how much they want to charge for tickets to play games but I recommend charging .50 cents to make it affordable for the community. Contact your local police and/or fire department to see if they will make an appearance at the school’s carnival.
Any of the above suggestions are sure to earn your school money. Parent involvement is the most important key factor in this. Schools could not do most of these events without at least some parent involvement. Even if you can only volunteer your time or donate once during the school year, your school and child will appreciate it.
