Hi! Over the years I've been involved in a number of fundraising activities, large and small. Our most successful in the k-3 school are: Halloween Party in Oct, Movie Night in January, School Dance in February, Bingo Night in March, Talent Show in April and end of year carnival and picnic!
How do we make money? Ask for donations from local merchants and charge for the refreshments. For example, at movie night, we pick a fun kids' movie and then work around a theme. We get free popcorn from the local movie theater, bag it and sell the bags, bottles of water and small cans of soda. Families come in their pj,s and sit on blankets on the floor. The district provides a projector and we show the movie on the school gym wall. Raffles work well too. Depending on the movie, cheap and easy toys can be purchased that go with the theme and then kids buy tickets for a chance to win.
Other ideas: sell candy at the school dance and during Bingo Night.
How we do it. For the dance, a student's dad has his own DJ business so he offers the music and light system for free. Bingo Night: we have an "old fashioned ball turner" and use a microphone to call the numbers. We also write the numbers on a large wipe off board. At each table are disposable Bingo sheets and a basket of crayons.
Our biggest fundraiser is our annual "Penny Carnival" done toward the end of the school year. We grill hot dogs (sell the dogs, chips and drink) and have games (sell 20 tickets for $1), etc. The raffle prizes are donated..and that's where we get most of the money.
Here's a Family Night idea that isn't money maker, but good for cold winter nights. For a reading night, have a local "celebrity" come and read the books. One year we had a local, well-known TV sports anchor (who happened to be a student's grandfather) come and read books to the families. We brought in an arm chair, table and lamp and set it on a rug in the gym. We turned out the lights. Everyone sat on the floor, it was very nice. I had found four interesting sports-related picture books for him to read. He got them about a week ahead of time so he could look them over. I got the books at the library so it was no charge. Afterwards, we had refreshments (cookies that families brought in..). Our family events only last an hour, so this worked out great. He also took questions afterwards about sports..
Another money maker: have a t-shirt design contest. I've done this every two years for many years. Introduce the student body to the contest by wearing a plain white t-shirt. Can be done during lunch periods. Tell them that it would be great to wear a shirt that showed school spirit, etc. Send home a flyer that introduces the contest and explains rules (if you have any). Set a deadline and watch the entries roll in!
The winner is: I again ask local "celebrities" to come and be judges. They include the principal, superintendent, bus drivers, crossing guards, firemen and police, and the most popular: high school cheerleaders!
Each entry is mounted on black construction paper and given a number. They are hung in the hallway. No one's name is on the front. The judges choose their top three favorites and majority wins.
The winner is announced during a family breakfast..and receives a framed copy of their entry and a free t-shirt. We sell t-shirts, sweatshirts in sizes for the whole family and tote bags...charge a little more than the t-shirt printer and make some money!
I'll stop now!