After Monica mentioned the cake walk...I have to tell this story (I actually used it in my President's column for our paper this month). My dad was a PTO President back in 1957. I didn't know that till this past summer when my sister told me. But apparently they did a cake walk and my mom's bundt cake just tore up and she was mortified. This was the 50's and her bona fides as a woman were at stake. Well apparently my dad convinced her to frost the bundt cake tin and put that at the walk and he spent nearly 3 dollars (10 cents a walk) to win back that cake pan and make sure she wasn't embarrassed. Is that a neat story or what [img]smile.gif[/img] ....d
Another great Teachers Appreciation ideas is to do a cake walk. its kinda like playing musical chairs, but they walk around numbers and when the music stops what ever number was draw and their standing on that number goes and pick a cake or special treat of there choice off from the table, we had all the cakes and godies donated by parents the teachers loved it, (so didnt their husbands when they got home)!!!.
We are asked to only have parents brin in things that are prepackaged store bought. Like shredded cheese and crackers and we pay for the chili. We can't even have homemade cakes for our cakewalk. Our kitchen is designed for prepackaged lunches, no stove. We do have a stove in one of the teacher workrooms but it is small and electric-not the ideal for making large quantities of things that need to cook for any length of time. For appreciation stuff, we either purchase it off site or a PTO member makes it at home(apparently we are ok). As for family events, we basically quit serving food because it was a huge hassle. We only serve food if it is something we can cook in our big roasters or crockpots.
The irony of commitment is that it’s deeply liberating-in work, in play, in love. The act frees you from the tyranny of your internal critic, from the fear that likes to dress itself up and parade around as rational hesitation. To commit is to remove your head as the barrier to your life. --Anne Morris
Does your PTO use donations from parents? Have there ever been complaints (Boy I wonder who's kitchen this came out of??? Ewe - cat hair!)
We do appreciation lunches twice a year during the first day of conferences. In the past, we have had parents bring in most of the salads, desserts and 2-liters of pop as their "thank you" to the staff. We assign dontions by grade level or the first letter of their last name like at a church pot-luck. Our committee has traditionally provided the main dish, place settings, decorations, etc. One of our biggest problems is that the main dish must be bought or made in our homes as the school kitchen no longer has a stove (food service brings lunches over from another building). FYI - This "simple" school change now makes it impossible for us to do our annual chili supper. . .
I'd like to know how your PTO handles parent donations for luncheons, bake sales, etc.
Well, I was going to borrow the Graden Party idea, until I just read the one about the Oscars! Now I don't know which one to do. I really like the walk of fame idea.
But in today's mail I got the Kraft foods magazine that had a couple great looking salads. If you don't get the magazine, the web site is kraftfoods.com. It says to search "salads" for the salad-a-day collection.
I was thinking for the garden party idea that I would get whatever potted flowers I can in this area at the beginning of May and re-pot them in pretty pots that the teachers/staff can then take home. I was in Target tonight and saw some pretty plates and napkins with just one large flower on them. They also have plastic stem glasses that have red or blue butterflies on the stem. I want to make lemonade and iced tea, but does anyone have a different, maybe "refresher" recipe than the standard?
For dessert, I plan to do a variety tray (I only have 9 people to feed, so it's easy to do) with 3 or 4 different easy to handle items. Definitely something chocolate!
My biggest block is that one of the teachers has celiac disease, so I have to be careful what I make -- have to be sure there is stuff she can eat! Last year, she had just been diagnosed, but noone told me, and she couldn't eat what I had made for lunch (chicken/pasta dish) I felt terrible!
Thanks for all the great ideas and I welcome all I can get!!
