Brad-
That sounds like a good idea to move it to a time of year where you can use the outdoors for other activities. I wonder if you change if from the sock hop name if you will lose people tho.
Maybe you could have a sock hop in gym and have food outside and kind of carry over that theme to other 50s and 60s activities -- roller skating, milk shakes and hotdogs
Badpants - have you ever done a scavenger hunt? I would love to try one at our school but have no idea where to begin.
The Sock hop has become a tradition however, all of our schools are on a campus so our PTO is responsible for three schoolsranging 4k - 8.
the problem is space, we use the HS gym, halls and cafeteria and it is crowded. Most parents don't like the event but the children love it. We are thinkingabout changing the time of year to allow us to use outside spaces as well to help accomodate the crowd control. Maybe a Harvest Fair with all the fall fun things and "Barn dance" instead of sock hop.
Hi Brad-
You have some good questions. Guess I would start by asking you a question: Has the Sock hop become a family tradition at your school? If the answer is yes then I wouldn't eliminate it. Think that badpants brings up some good points: maybe you want to look for a place that can accommodate more people. Or maybe you could make it less chaotic by having more things to do, i.e. if it's in your school gym have games in the hall way to let the kids blow off steam. Maybe you could enlist the help of High School Students (community service hours) to help with additional activities.
That said, it's great that you are re-evaluating and thinking outside the box: your idea to create an event to let parents get to know each other is also a good one. Sounds like they are two different things. Our school started something a few years ago at the grade level. Each class has a parent potluck at someone's house. It's really simple - the room parent sends out a notice asking for someone to volunteer to host, and someone to "promote" -- all the host had to do is clean their house (optional ; ) and everyone brought food to share. Some classes did as badpants suggested and played
icebreaker games
so people didn't just hang out with the folks they already knew. In some cases the (brave) teachers attend and other don't. It has proven to be a great way to feel more like a community. Then when there are the bigger events people are more likely to attend because they feel like they are already in the loop.
What is chaotic about your event? Is it that you now have more families attending than you have space for or is it that there are too many kids running loose and parents aren't enjoying themsleves?
I would revisit the purpose behind your event. If you have out grown your space, maybe look to have it in another location, like a high school gym. Or, you may want to go to an RSVP system. Our auction can seat 400, which is where we have to cut off ticket sales. Our parking lot can only accommodate 150 or so cars for our annual Trunk or Treat event.
You can't force people to mingle or move outside their comfort zone. But, you can plan an event to counter the obstacle. If you really want people to mingle, I would suggest a parent only event. If you want them to move outside of their box, maybe an event off of school grounds. We have a Welcome Back Parent Social just as school starts, that is held at a local night spot. They have a great outdoor garden patio. It's casual and our PTO springs for an appetizer buffet. Or maybe you could try a comedy night at a local comedy club.
No matter what you plan, someone will feel left out, will not be interested, will have other plans or won't be able to afford it. Maybe your original Sock Hop idea just needs to be revamped for adults. You could change to a Saturday Night Fever, hire a DJ and invite parents to shake their groove thing. You could add a trivia portion to the night to encourage more interaction between people.
Another thought is a scavenger hunt. Once people RSVP, all names could be randomly drawn to make teams, so that people don't fall into their same groups.
