Our PTO conducts a Harvest Fair in October. It’s a carnival-type event and it is a blast! Our events have been very successful because we ask teachers from each grade (K-5) to run a booth. Classrooms from each grade level team up and run at least two booths during the event. Our first-grade teacher teams ran 5 booths at the last event!
The reason why the teachers are so willing to run booths at the event is because whatever money their booth(s) earn goes directly to that grade level! The teachers can use the money they earn for field trips, or classroom supplies, etc.
Our teachers are great—they set up and decorate their own booths, they ask parents from each classroom to volunteer, they get donations for their booths, or they purchase the supplies and are reimbursed from their booth’s earnings. This saves the PTO a lot of expenses, and it’s a great way to have a fun carnival with a variety of activities!
This is how it works: We put up a sign-up sheet in the teacher’s lounge. We limit the number of food booths: we’ll have one space for drinks (soda & water); one space for pizza, one for hotdogs; one for popcorn; etc. Then we list recommended games & activities: face painting, cookie decorating, bean bag toss games, lollipop pulls, spin art, etc.
The PTO sells tickets (50 cents each) at the entrance of the carnival. People use the tickets like cash at each booth. Each booth is responsible for keeping their tickets, counting them and turning them over to the PTO with a “Count Sheet†(number of tickets & dollar amount). We deposit all of the money into the PTO account and issue checks as teachers turn in their tickets. It may sound like a pain, but selling tickets is very practical. The teachers told us they didn’t want to be responsible for the cash. It makes sense because the booths get very busy—and tickets are just easier and safer to handle.
This year, other groups (besides classrooms) decided to run booths: Student Council, the library, Odyssey of the Mind (GATE program); the after-school program and the front-office staff held a cake-walk to earn money for items they needed.
The PTO board members take turns selling tickets so everyone gets a chance to enjoy the event. We also hired a Rock Climbing Wall! The money we make on the Rock Wall basically pays for it (about $500). The PTO doesn’t make any money from this event because it’s designed to raise money for the classrooms. We’re just the organizers!
